Prediction of deformation in the potassium-arrested canine left ventricle using the finite element model

A finite element model for the diastolic canine left ventricle based on large deformation theory has been developed. The myocardial stress-strain relation determined by the diastolic pressure-volume relation was used in this study. The ventricle was assumed as a homogeneous, isotropic, thick-walled solid of revolution with variable thickness. The predicted shapes based on the model were in close agreement with the shapes recorded by two-dimensional echocardiography. The stress calculated at the subendocardium was considerably larger as compared to that at the subepicardium. For example, at an intraventricular pressure of 10 cmH2O, the stress at the subendocardium was 80 g/cm2 and about four times larger than that at the subepicardium.