Fontaine G, Aldakar M, Iwa T, Mrdja S, Grosgogeat Y
Service de Rythmologie et de Stimulation Cardiaque, Hôpital Jean Rostand, Ivry.
Ann Cardiol Angeiol (Paris). 1990 Sep;39(7):389-95.
The electrical phenomena produced during the fulguration impulses are analyzed using a digital oscilloscope which enables the calculation, with precision, of the energies consumed all along the curve or between chosen times. Moreover, it enables the calculation of the corresponding impedance values and shows that the latter varies during all the discharge. The explanation for these impedance variations is obtained thanks to rapid cinematography, showing the formation of the fulguration bubble. Hence, one can observe an impedance variation which is quite distinctive from the one which would correspond to the simple passage of an electrical current in saline solution. Particularly at the end of the impulse, an important increase in the impedance corresponds to the loss of ionization of the bubble. Therefore, by simply reading these electrical parameters, it is possible to know the main stages of the fulguration phenomenon for impulses situated around the deflagration threshold.