Role of aortic root motion in fluid-structure interaction simulations of ascending thoracic aortic aneurysm
Author(s)
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Objective: Computational modelling of ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAA) typically assumes zerodisplacement at the model's inlet. In this study we incorporated different types of aortic root motion into fluid-structure interaction (FSI) models representing an ATAA and a healthy aorta to examine their impacts on wall stress and wall shear stress (WSS) predictions. Methods: Five types of boundary conditions were specified at the inlet of the solid domain: (a) zerodisplacement constraints, (b) longitudinal displacement, (c) inplane displacement, (d) combined longitudinal and in-plane displacement, and (e) rotation. The aortic walls were prestressed and modelled as anisotropic hyperelastic materials. A transitional turbulence model was employed to simulate the non-Newtonian blood flow, together with patient-specific boundary conditions. Results: Combined longitudinal and in-plane displacement at the aortic root increased regions with elevated maximum principal stress (MPS > 250 kPa) by 331% for the healthy aorta, and 57.1% for the ATAA model. Peak wall stress showed modest increases by 11.4% and 14% in the ATAA model and healthy aorta, respectively. Combined longitudinal and in-plane displacement increased the area of extremely high WSS regions (> 20 Pa) by 20.5% in the ATAA model, primarily in the ascending aorta. For the healthy aorta, rotation had the most notable impact on WSS, reducing the area of elevated WSS regions (> 7 Pa) by 18.8%. Conclusion: Our results highlight the importance of incorporating aortic root motion into FSI models for more accurate prediction of aortic wall stress and WSS. This would enhance patient-specific risk stratification for patients with ATAA.
Date Issued
2025-04-07
Date Acceptance
2025-04-02
Citation
IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, 2025, pp.1-9
ISSN
0018-9294
Publisher
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
Start Page
1
End Page
9
Journal / Book Title
IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering
Copyright Statement
© 2025, IEEE. This is the author’s accepted manuscript made available under a CC-BY licence in accordance with Imperial’s Research Publications Open Access policy (www.imperial.ac.uk/oa-policy)
License URL
Publication Status
Published online
Date Publish Online
2025-04-07