Estimation of Cardiovascular Relative Pressure Using Virtual Work-Energy.

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular physiology
• Medical imaging
• Biomechanical engineering

Background:

• Cardiovascular diseases often cause local increases in relative pressure, a key biomarker for disease severity.
• Current methods for measuring relative pressure include invasive catheterization and non-invasive Doppler ultrasound, each with limitations.
• Doppler ultrasound provides only relative pressure estimates for specific constricted conditions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce a novel, non-invasive method for measuring relative pressures throughout imaged vascular structures.
• To overcome the limitations of existing invasive and non-invasive techniques for pressure assessment.
• To enable arbitrary interrogation of relative pressures in complex cardiovascular geometries.

Main Methods:

• Leveraging phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (PC-MRI).
• Applying virtual work-energy equations and a virtual field.
• Developing a non-invasive approach for arbitrary pressure interrogation in vascular structures.

Main Results:

• The method provides robust and accurate estimates of relative pressures.
• Versatility and accuracy were verified in patient-specific cardiovascular models.
• Relative pressures in previously inaccessible flow regions were successfully assessed.

Conclusions:

• The developed non-invasive method offers a novel tool for in-vivo relative pressure assessment.
• Validated in congenital heart disease patients, it enhances cardiovascular disease evaluation.
• This technique advances the non-invasive stratification of cardiovascular disease severity.