Fully coupled dynamic simulations of bioprosthetic aortic valves based on an embedded strategy for fluid-structure interaction with contact

Computational haemodynamics for pulmonary valve replacement by means of a reduced fluid-structure interaction model

Pulmonary valve replacement (PVR) consists of substituting a patient's original valve with a prosthetic one, primarily addressing pulmonary valve insufficiency, which is crucially relevant in Tetralogy of Fallot repairment. While extensive clinical and computational literature on aortic and mitral valve replacements is available, PVR's post-procedural haemodynamics in the pulmonary artery and the impact of prosthetic valve dynamics remain significantly understudied. Addressing this gap, we introduce a reduced Fluid-Structure Interaction (rFSI) model, applied for the first time to the pulmonary valve. This model couples a three-dimensional computational representation of pulmonary artery haemodynamics with a one-degree-of-freedom model to account for valve structural mechanics. Through this approach, we analyse patient-specific haemodynamics pre and post PVR. Patient-specific geometries, reconstructed from CT scans, are virtually equipped with a template valve geometry. Boundary conditions for the model are established using a lumped-parameter model, fine-tuned based on clinical patient data. Our model accurately reproduces patient-specific haemodynamic changes across different scenarios: pre-PVR, six months post-PVR, and a follow-up condition after a decade. It effectively demonstrates the impact of valve implantation on sustaining the diastolic pressure gradient across the valve. The numerical results indicate that our valve model is able to reproduce overall physiological and/or pathological conditions, as preliminary assessed on two different patients. This promising approach provides insights into post-PVR haemodynamics and prosthetic valve effects, shedding light on potential implications for patient-specific outcomes.

Hydrogel-polyurethane fiber composites with enhanced microarchitectural control for heart valve replacement

Polymeric heart valves offer the potential to overcome the limited durability of tissue based bioprosthetic valves and the need for anticoagulant therapy of mechanical valve replacement options. However, developing a single-phase material with requisite biological properties and target mechanical properties remains a challenge. In this study, a composite heart valve material was developed where an electrospun mesh provides tunable mechanical properties and a hydrogel coating confers an antifouling surface for thromboresistance. Key biological responses were evaluated in comparison to glutaraldehyde-fixed pericardium. Platelet and bacterial attachment were reduced by 38% and 98%, respectively, as compared to pericardium that demonstrated the antifouling nature of the hydrogel coating. There was also a notable reduction (59%) in the calcification of the composite material as compared to pericardium. A custom 3D-printed hydrogel coating setup was developed to make valve composites for device-level hemodynamic testing. Regurgitation fraction (9.6 ± 1.8%) and effective orifice area (1.52 ± 0.34 cm2 ) met ISO 5840-2:2021 requirements. Additionally, the mean pressure gradient was comparable to current clinical bioprosthetic heart valves demonstrating preliminary efficacy. Although the hemodynamic properties are promising, it is anticipated that the random microarchitecture will result in suboptimal strain fields and peak stresses that may accelerate leaflet fatigue and degeneration. Previous computational work has demonstrated that bioinspired fiber microarchitectures can improve strain homogeneity of valve materials toward improving durability. To this end, we developed advanced electrospinning methodologies to achieve polyurethane fiber microarchitectures that mimic or exceed the physiological ranges of alignment, tortuosity, and curvilinearity present in the native valve. Control of fiber alignment from a random fiber orientation at a normalized orientation index (NOI) 14.2 ± 6.9% to highly aligned fibers at a NOI of 85.1 ± 1.4%. was achieved through increasing mandrel rotational velocity. Fiber tortuosity and curvilinearity in the range of native valve features were introduced through a post-spinning annealing process and fiber collection on a conical mandrel geometry, respectively. Overall, these studies demonstrate the potential of hydrogel-polyurethane fiber composite as a heart valve material. Future studies will utilize the developed advanced electrospinning methodologies in combination with model-directed fabrication toward optimizing durability as a function of fiber microarchitecture.

Research on fatigue optimization simulation of polymeric heart valve based on the iterative sub-regional thickened method

Prosthetic polymeric heart valves (PHVs) have the potential to overcome the inherent material and design limitations of traditional valves in the treatment of valvular heart disease; however, their durability remains limited. Optimal design of the valve structure is necessary to improve their durability. This study aimed to enhance the fatigue resistance of PHVs by improving the stress distribution. Iterative subregional thickening of the leaflets was used, and the mechanical stress distribution and hemodynamics of these polymeric tri-leaflet valves were characterized using a fluid-structure interaction approach. Subregional thickening led to a reduction in stress concentration on the leaflet, with the effective orifice area still meeting ISO 5840-3 and the regurgitant volume achieving a similar value to those in previous studies. The maximum stress in the final iteration was reduced by 28% compared with that of the prototype. The proposed method shows potential for analyzing the stress distribution and hemodynamic performance of subregional thickened valves and can further improve the durability of PHVs.

Fluid-structure interaction modeling of compliant aortic valves using the lattice Boltzmann CFD and FEM methods

The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) has been increasingly used as a stand-alone CFD solver in various biomechanical applications. This study proposes a new fluid-structure interaction (FSI) co-modeling framework for the hemodynamic-structural analysis of compliant aortic valves. Toward that goal, two commercial software packages are integrated using the lattice Boltzmann (LBM) and finite element (FE) methods. The suitability of the LBM-FE hemodynamic FSI is examined in modeling healthy tricuspid and bicuspid aortic valves (TAV and BAV), respectively. In addition, a multi-scale structural approach that has been employed explicitly recognizes the heterogeneous leaflet tissues and differentiates between the collagen fiber network (CFN) embedded within the elastin matrix of the leaflets. The CFN multi-scale tissue model is inspired by monitoring the distribution of the collagen in 15 porcine leaflets. Different simulations have been examined, and structural stresses and resulting hemodynamics are analyzed. We found that LBM-FE FSI approach can produce good predictions for the flow and structural behaviors of TAV and BAV and correlates well with those reported in the literature. The multi-scale heterogeneous CFN tissue structural model enhances our understanding of the mechanical roles of the CFN and the elastin matrix behaviors. The importance of LBM-FE FSI also emerges in its ability to resolve local hemodynamic and structural behaviors. In particular, the diastolic fluctuating velocity phenomenon near the leaflets is explicitly predicted, providing vital information on the flow transient nature. The full closure of the contacting leaflets in BAV is also demonstrated. Accordingly, good structural kinematics and deformations are captured for the entire cardiac cycle.