Transient, three-dimensional, multiscale simulations of the human aortic valve

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Computational Biology
• Cardiovascular Research

Background:

• The human aortic valve (AV) plays a critical role in regulating blood flow.
• Understanding the dynamic behavior of the AV across multiple length scales is essential for diagnosing and treating valvular diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and integrate multiscale, three-dimensional computational models of the human aortic valve.
• To examine the dynamic behavior of the AV from the cellular to the organ level.

Main Methods:

• Developed fully three-dimensional, nonlinear, anisotropic material models for AV simulations.
• Created linked organ-scale (fluid-structure interaction), tissue-scale (cusp behavior), and cell-scale (cellular deformation) models.
• Verified each simulation against experimental data.

Main Results:

• The organ-scale model predicts blood, cusp, and aortic root motion throughout the cardiac cycle.
• The tissue-scale model simulates AV cusp behavior, including layered structure and geometry.
• The cell-scale model quantifies cellular deformations within the cusps.

Conclusions:

• This integrated multiscale simulation framework represents a significant advancement in AV research.
• The models allow for detailed analysis of transient, three-dimensional AV behavior across all relevant length scales.
• This approach facilitates a deeper understanding of AV mechanics and pathology.