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In Vitro Validation of Finite Element Analysis of Blood Flow in Deformable Models

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Abstract

The purpose of this article is to validate numerical simulations of flow and pressure incorporating deformable walls using in vitro flow phantoms under physiological flow and pressure conditions. We constructed two deformable flow phantoms mimicking a normal and a restricted thoracic aorta, and used a Windkessel model at the outlet boundary. We acquired flow and pressure data in the phantom while it operated under physiological conditions. Next, in silico numerical simulations were performed, and velocities, flows, and pressures in the in silico simulations were compared to those measured in the in vitro phantoms. The experimental measurements and simulated results of pressure and flow waveform shapes and magnitudes compared favorably at all of the different measurement locations in the two deformable phantoms. The average difference between measured and simulated flow and pressure was approximately 3.5 cc/s (13% of mean) and 1.5 mmHg (1.8% of mean), respectively. Velocity patterns also showed good qualitative agreement between experiment and simulation especially in regions with less complex flow patterns. We demonstrated the capabilities of numerical simulations incorporating deformable walls to capture both the vessel wall motion and wave propagation by accurately predicting the changes in the flow and pressure waveforms at various locations down the length of the deformable flow phantoms.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Lakhbir Johal, Chris Elkins, Sandra Rodriguez, Anne Sawyer, and all staff at the Lucas Center at Stanford University for assistance with the imaging experiments. This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health (Grants P50 HL083800, P41 RR09784, and U54 GM072970) and the National Science Foundation (0205741, and CNS-0619926 for computer resources).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Bioengineering, James H. Clark Center, Stanford University, 318 Campus Drive, E350B, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Ethan O. Kung, Andrea S. Les, C. Alberto Figueroa & Charles A. Taylor

  2. Department of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Michael V. McConnell

  3. Department of Surgery, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA

    Charles A. Taylor

  4. W.M. Keck Center for 3D Innovation, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA

    Francisco Medina, Karina Arcaute & Ryan B. Wicker

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  1. Ethan O. Kung
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  2. Andrea S. Les
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  3. C. Alberto Figueroa
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  8. Charles A. Taylor
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Correspondence to Charles A. Taylor.

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Associate Editor Joan Greve oversaw the review of this article.

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Kung, E.O., Les, A.S., Figueroa, C.A. et al. In Vitro Validation of Finite Element Analysis of Blood Flow in Deformable Models. Ann Biomed Eng 39, 1947–1960 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-011-0284-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-011-0284-7

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