A fully resolved active musculo-mechanical model for esophageal transport

Area of Science:

• Physiology
• Biomedical Engineering
• Computational Fluid Dynamics

Background:

• Esophageal transport is a complex physiological process involving bolus, esophagus, and neural coordination.
• Understanding esophageal motor function is crucial for diagnosing and treating motility disorders.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate an integrated computational model for simulating esophageal peristaltic transport.
• To investigate the roles of esophageal muscle activation and mucosal layers in bolus propulsion.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an immersed boundary (IB) approach to simulate fluid-structure interaction.
• Modeled the esophagus as an actively contracting, fiber-reinforced tube and the bolus as a viscous fluid.
• Verified the model against benchmark problems and analytic solutions before complex simulations.

Main Results:

• Successfully simulated esophageal peristaltic transport, capturing pressure peaks at the bolus tail.
• The integrated model incorporates the bolus, multi-layered esophagus, and muscle activation.
• Provided detailed insights into the kinematics of the esophageal wall and pressure dynamics.

Conclusions:

• The computational model offers a novel approach to studying esophageal transport.
• Simulations provide valuable data correlating with experimental observations and clinical measurements.
• Findings can aid in understanding esophageal motor function and interpreting clinical data from manometry and ultrasound.