Balloon Catheter-Integrated Piezoelectric Micropyramid Arrays for Measuring Vascular Stiffness

Atherosclerosis is one of the severe cardiovascular diseases in which blood vessels lose elasticity and the lumen narrows. If atherosclerosis worsens, it commonly leads to acute coronary syndrome (ACS) due to the rupture of vulnerable plaque or aortic aneurysm. As the mechanical properties of vascular tissues vary from their conditions, measuring the vascular stiffness of an inner blood vessel wall may be applied to the accurate diagnosis of atherosclerotic symptoms. Therefore, early mechanical detection of vascular stiffness is highly needed for immediate medical attention for ACS. Even with conventional examination methods such as intravascular ultrasonography and optical coherence tomography, several limitations still remain that make it difficult to directly determine the mechanical properties of the vascular tissue. As piezoelectric materials convert mechanical energy to electricity without an external power source, a piezoelectric nanocomposite could be utilized as a balloon catheter-integrated mechanical sensor on its surface. Here, we present piezoelectric nanocomposite micropyramid balloon catheter (p-MPB) arrays for measuring vascular stiffness. We study the structural characterization and feasibility of p-MPB as endovascular sensors by conducting finite element method analyses. Also, multifaceted piezoelectric voltages are measured by compression/release tests, in vitro vascular phantom tests, and ex vivo porcine heart tests to confirm that the p-MPB sensor properly operates in blood vessels.