A physics-informed eikonal model for simulating arrhythmias in the human heart in real-time

T Thomas G. Schrotter M Matthias A. F. Gsell E Elena Zappon C Christoph M. Augustin A Aurel Neic S Simone Pezzuto G Gernot Plank

Abstract

Abstract Personalized computational models of cardiac electrophysiology, referred to as cardiac digital twins, are considered a key technology for realizing precision cardiology by tailoring therapies to individual patients. However, the high computational demands of physically detailed simulations prohibit broader adoption of cardiac digital twins in practical applications. Here, we aim to address this challenge with a lightweight Physics-Informed Eikonal model that replicates the biophysical phenomena embedded within cardiac electrophysiology models along with clinical electrograms in near real-time, including arrhythmia scenarios. Validity of the proposed model is shown against a gold-standard cardiac electrophysiology model in complex arrhythmia simulations, including a scar-mediated ventricular tachycardia in a human whole-heart model. In this work, we show that the Physics-Informed Eikonal model delivers near-real time performance and retains high physical fidelity as required for the calibration of cardiac digital twins, thus providing a fundamental core technology to be leveraged in industrial and clinical applications.

Article Details

Volume / Issue Vol. 1, Issue 1
Published July 29, 2026
ISSN 2041-1723
Publisher Nature Portfolio

Journal Info

Nature Communications

Nature Portfolio

ISSN: 2041-1723 Open Access Life Sciences

Authors (7)

T

Thomas G. Schrotter

M

Matthias A. F. Gsell

E

Elena Zappon

C

Christoph M. Augustin

A

Aurel Neic

S

Simone Pezzuto

G

Gernot Plank