Pacing and defibrillation have become the leading therapeutic treatments of heart rhythm disorders, including bradycardia and tachycardia. The history of the successful development of bioelectric therapies includes the development of experimental and theoretical methodologies, novel bioengineering approaches and state-of-the-art clinical implantable device therapies. This volume will present a uniform thematic collection of reviews written by the leading basic and applied scientists working in basic bioengineering research laboratories, who have contributed to the development of current understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of pacing and electrophysiology, and who are at the leading edge of further developments in electrotherapy.

Igor R. Efimov, Ph.D., is Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri.

Mark W. Kroll, Ph.D., is Adjunct Professor Biomedical Engineering, California Polytechnic University and University of Minnesota..

Patrick J. Tchou, M.D. is in the Section of Cardiac Electrophysiology and Pacing at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Inhalt
History.- History of Cardiac Pacing.- History of Defibrillation.- Ventricular Fibrillation: A Historical Perspective.- Theory of Electric Stimulation and Defibrillation.- The Bidomain Theory of Pacing.- Bidomain Model of Defibrillation.- The Generalized Activating Function.- Theory of Electroporation.- Electrode Mapping of Defibrillation.- Critical Points and the Upper Limit of Vulnerability for Defibrillation.- The Role of Shock-Induced Nonregenerative Depolarizations in Ventricular Fibrillation and Defibrillation: The Graded Response Hypothesis.- Optical Mapping of Stimulation and Defibrillation.- Mechanisms of Isolated Cell Stimulation.- The Role of Microscopic Tissue Structure in Defibrillation.- Virtual Electrode Theory of Pacing.- The Virtual Electrode Hypothesis of Defibrillation.- Simultaneous Optical and Electrical Recordings.- Optical Mapping of Multisite Ventricular Fibrillation Synchronization.- Methodology.- The Bidomain Model of Cardiac Tissue: From Microscale to Macroscale.- Multielectrode Mapping of the Heart.- The Role of Electroporation.- Implications for Implantable Devices.- Lessons for the Clinical Implant.- Resonance and Feedback Strategies for Low-Voltage Defibrillation.- Pacing Control of Local Cardiac Dynamics.- Advanced Methods for Assessing the Stability and Control of Alternans.- The Future of the Implantable Defibrillator.- Lessons Learned from Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators Recordings.