Development of a Collagen Fibre Remodelling Rupture Risk Metric for Potentially Vulnerable Carotid Artery Atherosclerotic Plaques

Frontiers in Physiology

卷:12

Caitríona Lally¹  Milad Ghasemi²  Robert D. Johnston² 

[1] Advanced Materials and Bioengineering Research Centre (AMBER), Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland;

[2] Department of Mechanical, Manufacturing and Biomedical Engineering, School of Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland;

[3] Trinity Centre for Biomedical Engineering, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland;

关键词: plaque rupture;    atherosclerosis;    carotid arteries;    finite element;    arterial remodelling;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fphys.2021.718470

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Atherosclerotic plaque rupture in carotid arteries can lead to stroke which is one of the leading causes of death or disability worldwide. The accumulation of atherosclerotic plaque in an artery changes the mechanical properties of the vessel. Whilst healthy arteries can continuously adapt to mechanical loads by remodelling their internal structure, particularly the load-bearing collagen fibres, diseased vessels may have limited remodelling capabilities. In this study, a local stress modulated remodelling algorithm is proposed to explore the mechanical response of arterial tissue to the remodelling of collagen fibres. This stress driven remodelling algorithm is used to predict the optimum distribution of fibres in healthy and diseased human carotid bifurcations obtained using Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). In the models, healthy geometries were segmented into two layers: media and adventitia and diseased into four components: adventitia, media, plaque atheroma and lipid pool (when present in the MRI images). A novel meshing technique for hexahedral meshing of these geometries is also demonstrated. Using the remodelling algorithm, the optimum fibre patterns in various patient specific plaques are identified and the role that deviations from these fibre configurations in plaque vulnerability is shown. This study provides critical insights into the collagen fibre patterns required in carotid artery and plaque tissue to maintain plaque stability.

【 授权许可】

Unknown