Algorithms for detecting atrial arrhythmias from discriminatory signatures of ventricular cycle lengths

Apparatus for detecting atrial arrhythmias, comprising one or more of atrial fibrillation (AF) and atrial flutter (AFL) within a segment of ventricular heartbeats signified by intervals between successive ventricular heartbeats that exhibit discriminatory signatures when plotted as data points in a scatter-plot comprising:

• means for defining an AF signature metric for AF representative of the sparse distribution of data points during AF episodes and an AFL signature metric representative of the clustering distribution of data points during AFL episodes;
• means for determining each interval between successive ventricular heartbeats;
• means for plotting each succeeding interval as a data point in a scatter-plot;
• means for developing a discriminatory metric signifying the degree of sparseness or clustering of the data points of the scatter-plot;
• means for declaring AF if the discriminatory metric satisfies the AF signature metric representative of the distribution of data points during AF;
• and
• means for declaring AFL if the discriminatory metric satisfies the AFL signature metric representative of the distribution of data points during AFL.

A processor readable medium containing instructions to cause the processor to utilize ventricular signals to access atrial patterns for monitoring, diagnosis and prediction in the treatment of atrial arrhythmias comprising:

• determining each interval between successive ventricular heartbeats comprising;
• plotting each succeeding interval as a data point in a scatter-plot having an origin;
• developing a metric signifying the degree of sparseness or clustering of the data points within the scatter-plot and with respect to the origin;
• defining one or more of a sparseness discriminatory signature of data points in the scatter-plot representative of the distribution of data points with respect to origin during AF and a clustering discriminatory signature of data points in the scatter-plot representative of the distribution of data points with respect to origin during AFL;
• and
• declaring one or more of AF or AFL if the metric exhibits the sparseness discriminatory signature representative of the distribution of data points during AF and of AFL if the metric exhibits the clustering discriminatory signature representative of the distribution of data points during AFL.