3D MRI-based multicomponent thin layer structure only plaque models for atherosclerotic plaques.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Imaging
• Computational Mechanics

Background:

• Fluid-structure interaction (FSI) models analyze atherosclerotic plaque mechanics and plaque wall stress (PWS) in cardiovascular disease.
• Current 3D FSI model construction is time-consuming, limiting clinical application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a computationally efficient 3D thin-layer structure only (TLS) plaque model as an approximation to 3D FSI models.
• To assess the accuracy and clinical potential of the TLS model for atherosclerotic plaque analysis.

Main Methods:

• 192 TLS models were created from 192 ex vivo MRI images of 12 human coronary atherosclerotic plaques.
• Plaque stresses were extracted, and maximum (MPWS) and average (APWS) plaque wall stress values were compared between TLS and FSI models.

Main Results:

• The TLS model demonstrated low relative errors for MPWS (9.76%) and APWS (9.89%) compared to FSI models.
• Both MPWS and APWS values from TLS models showed strong correlation and consistent results with 3D FSI models.

Conclusions:

• The proposed 3D TLS plaque model serves as a viable, computationally inexpensive approximation to 3D FSI models.
• With further validation, TLS models could potentially replace FSI models, accelerating mechanical analysis of atherosclerotic plaques for clinical use.