Why catheter size matters more than viscosity in ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer reflux: an analytical study

Proximal reflux of liquid embolic agents remains a primary safety concern during endovascular embolization, yet the quantitative relationships governing reflux mechanics are poorly characterized. An analytical model was developed to determine the relative contributions of catheter geometry, agent viscosity, polymerization kinetics, and injection technique to reflux behavior of ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH).

An annular Poiseuille flow model was constructed for a 1 mm vessel with coaxial microcatheters (1.3-2.8 French; catheter-to-vessel diameter ratio D* = 0.43-0.92). Carreau rheology was applied to EVOH-18 and EVOH-34; blood and iodinated contrast were modeled as Newtonian. Extensions incorporated vessel compliance, first-order EVOH polymerization kinetics, and intermittent injection parameterized by duty cycle δ.

The annular geometry function φ(D*) spanned three orders of magnitude across the catheter range (0.179 to 0.0006), surpassing the maximum 2.4-fold inter-agent viscosity difference. At injection shear rates, EVOH-18 thinned to near-contrast viscosity (6.4 vs 6.1 mPa·s). EVOH polymerization reduced reflux up to 68% at low D* but was negligible at D* > 0.9. Under intermittent injection (δ = 0.20), effective reflux lengths fell up to tenfold, and the protective advantage of EVOH-34 over contrast increased from 1.35-fold to 4.1-fold.

Catheter-to-vessel geometry dominates reflux by orders of magnitude over viscosity; catheter selection is the primary modifiable safety determinant. EVOH polymerization provides geometrically selective secondary protection maximized by intermittent injection. The duty cycle δ is proposed as a standardizable parameter for reporting injection protocols.