Mechanical Characterization of the Human Atria Based on Patient- Specific Finite Element Method Models

Abstract

The left atrium (LA) is very essential in the overall performance of the cardiovascular process. Common cardiovascular diseases (CVD) of the atria are atrial fibrillation (AF) which is the most common cardiac arrhythmia in the world that affects over 9 million people in Europe per year and atrial stunning (AS) and can be resolved by minimal invasive cardiac interventions that accesses the LA. Trasseptal puncture technique (TSP) is the most used approach and the success rate depends on the experience of the surgeon. There are associated complications such as the possibility of multiple puncturing and procedural failures. To resolve these complications, the exact spot at which the septum requires to be traversed needs to be simulated and this project is aimed at developing technologies to assist physicians when performing this procedure. Finite element method (FEM) software called Abacus was employed to develop FEM model after effective analysis of the mechanical behavior of the atria specifically the atrial septal wall to enhance the effective optimization of the TSP technique.