For over 25 years, TheVirtualHeart.org has served as a continuously evolving platform for interactive cardiac electrophysiology, bridging education, research, and visualization. Originally launched in 2001 using Java applets, the site has transitioned to modern web technologies, including JavaScript, WebGL, and most recently WebGPU, enabling high-performance simulations directly within the browser without specialized software.
The platform hosts a comprehensive library of experimental and computational resources. These include high-resolution optical mapping movies of cardiac dynamics, as well as an extensive suite of interactive models spanning multiple scales: from simplified excitable systems and canonical ionic models to detailed human ventricular models such as Iyer et al. and the O'Hara–Virág–Varró–Rudy (OVVR) formulations. Over 20 distinct electrophysiological models are currently implemented, ranging from single-cell dynamics to one-, two-, and fully three-dimensional anatomically realistic atrial and ventricular simulations.
Recent developments have focused on performance, accessibility, and immersion. Advances in GPU-based computation now allow many of the more complex models, including the latest T-World model with 95 coupled differential equations, to run at near real-time speeds in the browser. These improvements enable interactive exploration of wave propagation, arrhythmia mechanisms, and parameter sensitivity in ways not previously possible outside specialized computational environments.
In addition, we present new tools for immersive visualization, including interactive three-dimensional cardiac simulations integrated into virtual environments and virtual reality (VR) systems, effectively creating a "virtual museum" of cardiac dynamics.
TheVirtualHeart.org demonstrates how modern web technologies can democratize access to advanced cardiac modeling, providing a unified, scalable, and interactive framework for teaching, hypothesis testing, and dissemination of complex electrophysiological phenomena.