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In Vitro Model of Physiological and Pathological Blood Flow with Application to Investigations of Vascular Cell Remodeling
Published on: November 3, 2015
Modeling flow effects on thrombotic deposition in a membrane oxygenator
M J Gartner1, C R Wilhelm, K L Gage
1Department of Surgery (Cardiothoracic) University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
Artificial Organs
|February 17, 2000
Summary
Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) identified low blood velocity regions in membrane oxygenators that corresponded to clinical thrombotic deposition. This finding offers a new method for optimizing oxygenator biocompatibility.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Medical Devices
- Fluid Dynamics
Background:
- Thrombotic deposition in membrane oxygenators is a clinical concern.
- Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) can predict blood flow patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if low blood velocity regions predicted by CFD correlate with clinical thrombotic deposition.
- To explore CFD-based design modifications for improved oxygenator biocompatibility.
Main Methods:
- Analyzed 20 clinical heparin-coated membrane oxygenators post-use.
- Used CFD modeling to predict blood velocity distributions.
- Compared CFD velocity maps with digitized images of thrombotic deposition.
Main Results:
- Low blood velocity regions predicted by CFD qualitatively matched areas of high thrombotic deposition.
- Thrombotic deposition frequency correlated with longer perfusion times.
- CFD modeling suggested design modifications to minimize low-velocity zones.
Conclusions:
- CFD accurately predicts regions prone to thrombotic deposition in membrane oxygenators.
- Coupling clinical data with CFD provides a powerful methodology for optimizing oxygenator design.
- This approach can enhance oxygenator biocompatibility by addressing flow-related issues.
