Excitation in a cylinder of cardiac membrane: an integral equation approach

An alternative method to the cable equation to model excitation in a cylinder cardiac fiber is described. The formulation uses Green's theorem to write down equations for the extracellular and intracellular potential on either side of the membrane without assuming that the radial current is zero. These equations are discretized to yield a system of linear equations which are solved at each instant in time. It is found that the radial current does not noticeably affect stable propagation, but there are some differences in the case of just liminal stimulation.<>