Numerical study of hemodynamics after stent implantation during the cardiac cycle

Abstract

The descending aortic aneurysm is one of the most catastrophic cardiovascular emergencies resulting in high mortality worldwide. Clinical observations have pointed out that stent implantation in the sick aorta should probably allow stabilization of the hemodynamic state of the patient's aorta. To better understand the hemodynamic impact of a stent-treated aneurysm, numerical simulations are used to evaluate hemodynamic parameters. These latter including flow profile, velocity distribution, aortic wall pressure and shear stress, which are difficult to measure in vivo. It should be noted that the numerical modeling assists in medical planning by providing patterns of blood circulation, in particular, the distribution of pressures and shear stresses in the wall. In this context, the pulsatile blood flow in the aneurysmal aorta with stent is studied by CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) simulations. Realistic boundary conditions time dependent are prescribed at the level of the different arteries of the complete aorta models. The hemodynamic profile of the aneurysmal aorta with stent was analyzed by contour planes of velocity vectors, pressures and shear stresses at different times during the cardiac cycle. The obtained results made it possible to show the effect of the stent on the improvement of the blood flow by solving the problems of hemodynamic disturbances in the aorta.  The methodology used in this work has revealed detailed and necessary information for the cases studied and shows the interest of the numerical tool for diagnosis and surgery.