A pacemaker operating under the control of a neural network has been created

Since its inceptiona pacemaker, a device implanted in the chest to maintain heart rate, acted as a pacemaker, that is, set the heart rate of organs that could not do it on their own. But a healthy heart does not always beat with the same frequency, but depends on a whole mass of factors. And all of them can not take into account a small pacemaker. But the neural network can do this. And it was the rhythm stimulation device that controls the neural network that scientists from Bristol University created.

Neural networks will help people live longer

How a neural network helps in the work of the heart

The human heart is constantly changing frequencyabbreviations. For example, it can accelerate when inhaling and slow down when exhaling. This phenomenon is known as respiratory sinus arrhythmia and is considered the norm for young people with a healthy heart. Moreover, it also has a physiological aspect. Due to this, the blood supply to the atria increases.

Such devices should listen towhat the human body needs, ”says Julian Paton, professor at the University of Bristol in the UK, and one of the authors of the development. We need smarter medical devices. A new smart pacemaker will be able to return natural variability to heart contractions, helping the body work more efficiently.

The device reads electrical signals,generated by each breath, and accordingly transfers this data to the heart. During experiments with laboratory mice with heart failure, the device increased the amount of blood that their hearts could pump by 20% compared to monotonous pacing. We regularly inform about such developments on the pages of our site. So sign up in order not to miss the most important thing.

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Modern pacemakers adjust the frequencyheart contractions, responding to changes in the body in relatively primitive ways, such as accelerometers or detecting fever. Some newer devices can measure heart rhythm based on breathing. But these devices track average respiration over a period of time.

The device created by the British is equipped withan analog chip based on a neural network developed at the University of Bath. In experiments on rats, the chip recorded the electrical activity of the muscles of the diaphragm of mice, which contracted during inspiration. The chip interprets the signals transmitted in real time using the Hodgkin-Huxley equations - roughly speaking, this is a mathematical simulation of how action potentials in cells responsible for heart rhythm are initiated and propagated. After analyzing the data, the device starts electrical stimulation of the left atrium of the heart, causing it to beat in synchronism with breathing.

Advantage of using analog suchThe approach is that the new device can respond quickly to changes in breathing, ”says Julian Paton. In this case, the gadget is easily scalable and can be reduced to the size of a postage stamp.

Scientists claim that the next steptesting in humans, the device will not need to record signals from the diaphragmatic muscle. Instead, it will be possible to integrate the device into conventional pacemakers and measure respiration by recording electrical changes in chest resistance.