Three-dimensional biomechanics of coronary arteries

The focus of this paper is to model and simulate the nonlinear dynamics of atherosclerotic coronary arteries as a tool to predict the initiation of heart attack. A dynamic three-dimensional visco/hyperelastic fluid-structure interaction model of an atherosclerotic coronary artery is developed by means of the finite element method (FEM) using ANSYS. Simulations are undertaken using the model to examine the risk of plaque rupture with the following parameters taken into account with varying levels of stenosis: physiological pulsatile blood flow; tapered shape of the artery; viscoelasticity and hyperelasticity of the artery wall; effect of the motion of the heart; active artery muscle contraction; the lipid core inside the plaque; three layers of the artery wall; non-Newtonian characteristics of the blood flow; and micro-calcification; this paper is the first to incorporate all these effects. The generated model can potentially be used as a predictive tool for plaque rupture to identify the conditions that are high risk for atherosclerosis plaque rupture.