Heart blood flow simulation: a perspective review.

Area of Science:

• * Cardiovascular fluid dynamics
• * Medical imaging and computational modeling
• * Clinical cardiology

Background:

• * Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of death, often linked to hemodynamic stress on the left ventricle (LV).
• * Early diagnosis and prognosis of CVD are crucial for reducing mortality and morbidity.
• * Image-based computational fluid dynamics (IB-CFD) offers a promising approach for assessing cardiovascular hemodynamics.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To review numerical simulations of patient-specific human LVs using IB-CFD methods over the past 15 years.
• * To analyze studies based on LV types (physiological and pathological) and discuss their methodologies, limitations, and findings.
• * To assess the current status and future potential of IB-CFD for clinical application in heart function assessment.

Main Methods:

• * Comprehensive literature review of IB-CFD studies on patient-specific LV simulations.
• * Categorization of studies by LV geometry: physiological and pathological (myocardial infarction, cardiomyopathies, hypoplastic left heart syndrome).
• * Analysis of simulation methodologies, hemodynamic parameter extraction, and clinical insights.

Main Results:

• * IB-CFD has been applied to diverse patient-specific LV models, providing insights into intraventricular flows.
• * Studies demonstrate the capability of CFD to simulate complex cardiovascular fluid dynamics.
• * Challenges remain in fully translating IB-CFD findings into routine clinical practice due to limitations and complications.

Conclusions:

• * Heart flow simulation using IB-CFD is progressing towards becoming a valuable clinical tool.
• * Integration of heart structures' operations (e.g., valves) and development of diagnostic indices are key for adoption.
• * Continued research in IB-CFD holds significant potential for improving CVD diagnosis and patient management.