Computer analysis of cardiac catheterization data

The aim of the thesis is to describe the design, the development and the first six years of application of a computer based cardiac catheterization system currently in daily use at the Thoraxcenter of the University Hospital in Rotterdam, The Netherlands. Over the past three decades cardiac catheterization has become an increasingly sophisticated and complex procedure, which currently is considered as an indispensable step in the procedures leading to cardiac surgery. Given the need for accuracy, the need for automation has become evident. The steps along which this development took place, form the substance of the various chapters of this work. In chapter II the available literature has been reviewed and condensed in three parts: first, a selective description of the most relevant publications which existed prior to the design and development of the system; a second section in which all relevant previous publications from the Rotterdam group are enumerated but not further discussed, and a final listing of all the most important sources of reference that were utilized in one form or another in the entire text of this work. A detailed description of the system appeared in print in the peer-review literature in 1975. It forms the culmination of many years of work and details all the components in the design of hardware and software. Also it analyses the day-by-day operation of the entire system and provides some early insight in the experience accrued until 1975. In fact it can be considered as a sort of statement of our beliefs and is reprinted as chapter III