Probing the possibility of lesion formation/progression in vicinity of a primary atherosclerotic plaque: A fluid–solid interaction study and angiographic evidences

Nooraeen, Ahmad; Ghalichi, Farzan; Taghizadeh, Hadi; Guidoin, Robert

doi:10.1002/cnm.3605

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 95 publications

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“…Comparable findings were observed in previous studies involving stenosed arteries, as documented in Ref. [54]. Besides, this region also exhibits high LDL concentrations that, in conjunction with reduced TAWSS values, may foster the progression of an existing plaque or even the initiation of a new one.…”

Section: Casesupporting

confidence: 84%

A new open‐source solver for early detection of atherosclerosis based on hemodynamics and LDL transport simulation

Molina,

Obaid,

Ademiloye

2024

Engineering Reports

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This article presents a new open‐source solver within the OpenFOAM framework, to provide a cost‐free alternative to commercial software for simulating blood flows and the transport of low‐density lipoproteins (LDL) in arteries. The proposed algorithm utilizes the velocity field obtained from the hemodynamics computation to solve an advection‐diffusion equation governing a passive scalar variable, that represents the cholesterol concentration in blood. Moreover, two customized boundary conditions, namely periodic pulsatile inflow and LDL blood‐to‐wall transfer law, as well as a non‐Newtonian viscosity model, are included in the code to achieve more realistic results. The solver is first validated by reproducing two benchmark tests, the classical lid‐driven cavity experiment including heat transport, and a constricted tube simulating a stenosed artery. The results obtained were in good agreement with existing literature and experimental measurements, thus confirming the accuracy and robustness of the proposed open‐source solver. Finally, hemodynamics and LDL transport are computed in two arteries, one of them obtained by segmentation from an anonymized clinical patient. Stress and LDL concentration at the vessel's wall are employed to calculate significant descriptors revealing dangerous areas where atherosclerotic plaques could emerge. In the studied cases, the main branch of the artery, and especially the vicinity of the bifurcation, seem to be candidates to develop the illness. This conclusion is in line with medical in‐vivo studies evincing that bifurcations are an usual place where plaques grow.

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Section: Casesupporting

confidence: 84%

A new open‐source solver for early detection of atherosclerosis based on hemodynamics and LDL transport simulation

Molina,

Obaid,

Ademiloye

2024

Engineering Reports

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Hemodynamic coupling between a primary atherosclerotic plaque and subsequent secondary lesions

Nooraeen,

Taghizadeh,

Ghalichi

2024

Physics of Fluids

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Atherosclerosis is one of the most common diseases of the arterial tree, especially in the coronary arteries. Stenoses exceeding 50% area reduction are shown to alternate the downstream coronary flow, and hemodynamics will lead to further atherogenesis. Clinical evidence also confirms that vascular stenoses are not stagnant since they are usually associated with downstream lesions. In this study, it is hypothesized that the formation of secondary plaques, or aneurysms downstream of a primary stenosis, compensates for the abnormal ranges of hemodynamic forces caused by the primary stenosis. An experimental setup captured the hemodynamics of non-Newtonian blood flow in three-dimensional (3D) printed phantoms of coronary arteries with various sequences of lesions. Then, based on the collected data, in silico models of these lesions were simulated using computational fluid dynamics. For the proposed cases, time-averaged wall shear stress, velocity profile, oscillatory shear index, and relative residence time were extracted at the plaque side and the plaque front walls and compared to the reference model with only the primary plaque. The secondary plaque postulated the abnormal hemodynamic conditions to its downstream, which implies endothelial activation and onset of further pathologic events. However, the secondary aneurysm restored flow conditions to normal after its distal shoulder, preventing more damage to the endothelium. Examined angiograms of patients with developed atherosclerotic lesions unveiled that a sequence of plaques is formed over time, and most interestingly, the series stopped after the formation of an aneurysm.

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Analysis of physiological pulsating flow of Carreau fluid in a curved cerebral artery

Li,

Zhang,

Gao

et al. 2024

Physics of Fluids

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The study of blood flow in curved arteries aims to understand how hemodynamic behavior is affected by geometric factors, which is crucial for revealing the formation and progression of vascular diseases. Currently, most studies on blood flow in curved vessels have utilized computational fluid dynamics software. Numerical calculations have typically concentrated on the steady flow of Newtonian fluid in curved vessels with circular cross sections, while non-Newtonian fluid flow has predominantly been calculated in curved pipes with rectangular cross sections. In this paper, the governing equation of Carreau fluid flow in a curved cerebral artery with constant curvature is established using a curvilinear coordinate system, with the flow driven by a physiological pulsatile pressure gradient. Deriving support from finite difference method, numerical solutions are acquired, whose convergence and validity are verified. It is concluded that time-averaged wall shear stress peaks at the inner side of the artery, resulting in the risk of atherosclerosis, while relative residence time peaks at the outer side, causing the likelihood of cerebral infarction there. While an increase in δ amplifies the amplitude of both, it has barely any effect on their values at θ = π/2 and θ = 3π/2. Time-averaged Dean number is first defined to evaluate the development of secondary flow in curved arteries over a cardiac cycle. Near the wall, it peaks at the inner side of the vessel and escalates markedly with larger δ. This study can provide an effective reference for the early prevention and diagnosis of cerebral artery infarction.

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Probing the possibility of lesion formation/progression in vicinity of a primary atherosclerotic plaque: A fluid–solid interaction study and angiographic evidences

Cited by 4 publications

References 95 publications

A new open‐source solver for early detection of atherosclerosis based on hemodynamics and LDL transport simulation

A new open‐source solver for early detection of atherosclerosis based on hemodynamics and LDL transport simulation

Hemodynamic coupling between a primary atherosclerotic plaque and subsequent secondary lesions

Analysis of physiological pulsating flow of Carreau fluid in a curved cerebral artery

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