Computational modeling of carotid atherosclerotic carotid artery oriented to the characterization of pre and post intervention haemodynamics

 

Atherosclerosis of the carotid arteries is one of the leading cause of morbility and morbidity in Western countries. It mostly develops at bifurcation sites where it could lead to the plaque rupture or to a complete obstruction.

The development of the atherosclerotic plaque is a complex process, governed by several factors. In particular, blood fluid-dynamics is known to produce a shear stress at the wall that facilitates the plaque development. One of the most used surgical operations related to such a disease is the removal of the plaque i.e. Carotid Endarterectomy (CEA).

The project activity is organized in four tasks:

(A) Creating a patient-specific data-set from acquisition and processing of biomedical data: A.1) Performing the CEA and histological exams; A.2) Processing the acquired clinical data;

(B) Computational modeling of the atherosclerotic artery: B.1) Short time scale model (B.1.1 Mechanical model of the vessel and of the plaque; B.1.2 Model for the rupture of the plaque); B.2) Long time scale model;

(C) Advanced patient-specific numerical simulations and statistical analisys of turbolent flow pattern ;

(D) Providing a web-based High Performance Computing environment.

 

In collaboration with: