Stented Artery Flow Patterns and Their Effects on the Artery Wall

Abstract

Stent design and geometry influence the fluid mechanical environment in an artery and hence affect clinical outcomes of restenosis. There is clearly a role for biomechanics in improving current stent designs. This review summarizes some of the work that has been done to address the fluid mechanical aspects of stenting. A variety of computational, experimental, and in vivo approaches have been employed, and the results demonstrate a strong dependence on stent design, as well as effects on hemodynamics in locations of the circulatory system quite removed from the stented segment. There are also important solid mechanical aspects that affect clinical failures of stents that are not summarized here.