A consistent decision support system for interpreting of magnetocardiographic data as a tool to improve the acceptance of magnetocardiography in clinical practice

Background

Magnetocardiography undoubtedly has exceptionally high sensitivity to electrophysiological changes in the myocardium. This is an absolutely non-invasivemethod with no contraindications. However, several barriers exist to the widespread adoption of this technique into clinical routine. One of the most important is the lack of a clear and consistent medical algorithm for interpreting magnetocardiographic data, leading to a clinically significant decision.

Areas covered

The article outlines the main clinical questions clinicians pose using the magnetocardiography method. Methods for assessing the degree of abnormality of the results of a magnetocardiographic study and differential diagnosis based on the analysis of CDV maps are described in detail. Both methods for visual evaluation of sets of these maps and automatic decision rules based on linear discriminant analysis and pattern recognition are characterized. Also, techniques are described for localizing the pathological changes in the myocardium. As an example of using the developed system for interpreting magnetocardiographic data, the results of two multicenter studies in which this system of interpretation of MCG studies was used are presented.

Сonclusion

The magnetocardiographic examination is reliable for diagnosing chronic coronary heart disease, including in difficult-to-diagnose cases. A consistent system for interpreting of magnetocardiographic data allows medical practitioners to easily master the MCG technology and obtain the correct examination result.