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Ex Vivo Methods for Informing Computational Models of the Mitral Valve

  • The Pursuit of Engineering the Ideal Heart Valve Replacement or Repair
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Abstract

Computational modeling of the mitral valve (MV) has potential applications for determining optimal MV repair techniques and risk of recurrent mitral regurgitation. Two key concerns for informing these models are (1) sensitivity of model performance to the accuracy of the input geometry, and, (2) acquisition of comprehensive data sets against which the simulation can be validated across clinically relevant geometries. Addressing the first concern, ex vivo micro-computed tomography (microCT) was used to image MVs at high resolution (~40 micron voxel size). Because MVs distorted substantially during static imaging, glutaraldehyde fixation was used prior to microCT. After fixation, MV leaflet distortions were significantly smaller (p < 0.005), and detail of the chordal tree was appreciably greater. Addressing the second concern, a left heart simulator was designed to reproduce MV geometric perturbations seen in vivo in functional mitral regurgitation and after subsequent repair, and maintain compatibility with microCT. By permuting individual excised ovine MVs (n = 5) through each state (healthy, diseased and repaired), and imaging with microCT in each state, a comprehensive data set was produced. Using this data set, work is ongoing to construct and validate high-fidelity MV biomechanical models. These models will seek to link MV function across clinically relevant states.

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Acknowledgments

This work was partially supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship (ELP) under Grant DGE-1148903, as well as by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute under Grant R01HL119297.

Conflict of interest

No benefits in any form have been received from a commercial party related directly or indirectly to the subject of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cardiovascular Fluid Mechanics Laboratory, Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, 387 Technology Circle NW, Suite 200, Atlanta, GA, 30313, USA

    Charles H. Bloodworth IV, Eric L. Pierce, Thomas F. Easley, Milan Toma, Morten O. Jensen & Ajit P. Yoganathan

  2. Center for Cardiovascular Simulation, Institute for Computational Engineering and Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, 201 E. 24th Street, Austin, TX, 78712, USA

    Andrew Drach, Amir H. Khalighi & Michael S. Sacks

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  1. Charles H. Bloodworth IV
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  2. Eric L. Pierce
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Correspondence to Ajit P. Yoganathan.

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Associate Editor Lakshmi Prasad Dasi oversaw the review of this article.

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Bloodworth, C.H., Pierce, E.L., Easley, T.F. et al. Ex Vivo Methods for Informing Computational Models of the Mitral Valve. Ann Biomed Eng 45, 496–507 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-016-1734-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-016-1734-z

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