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A model based on the Pennes bioheat transfer equation is valid in normal brain tissue but not brain tissue suffering focal ischaemia

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Abstract

Ischaemic stroke is a major public health issue in both developed and developing nations. Hypothermia is believed to be neuroprotective in cerebral ischaemia. Conversely, elevated brain temperature is associated with poor outcome after ischaemic stroke. Mechanisms of heat exchange in normally-perfused brain are relatively well understood, but these mechanisms have not been studied as extensively during focal cerebral ischaemia. A finite element model (FEM) of heat exchange during focal ischaemia in the human brain was developed, based on the Pennes bioheat equation. This model incorporated healthy (normally-perfused) brain tissue, tissue that was mildly hypoperfused but not at risk of cell death (referred to as oligaemia), tissue that was hypoperfused and at risk of death but not dead (referred to as penumbra) and tissue that had died as a result of ischaemia (referred to as infarct core). The results of simulations using this model were found to match previous in-vivo temperature data for normally-perfused brain. However, the results did not match what limited data are available for hypoperfused brain tissue, in particular the penumbra, which is the focus of acute neuroprotective treatments such as hypothermia. These results suggest that the assumptions of the Pennes bioheat equation, while valid in the brain under normal circumstances, are not valid during focal ischaemia. Further investigation into the heat exchange profiles that do occur during focal ischaemia may yield results for clinical trials of therapeutic hypothermia.

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Funding

This study did not receive any direct funding. Dr Lillicrap received an Australian Postgraduate Award PhD scholarship through the Australian National University during the conduction of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hunter Medical Research Institute, Newcastle, NSW, Australia

    Thomas Lillicrap & Andrew Bivard

  2. Medical School, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

    Christian Lueck

  3. Neurology Department, The Canberra Hospital, Canberra, Australia

    Christian Lueck

  4. School of Engineering and IT, UNSW Canberra, Canberra, Australia

    Murat Tahtalı & Andrew Neely

  5. National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore

    Xiaofei Wang

Authors
  1. Thomas Lillicrap
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  2. Murat Tahtalı
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  3. Andrew Neely
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  4. Xiaofei Wang
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  5. Andrew Bivard
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  6. Christian Lueck
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Correspondence to Thomas Lillicrap.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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This study does not contain any studies with human participants or animals performed by any of the authors.

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Lillicrap, T., Tahtalı, M., Neely, A. et al. A model based on the Pennes bioheat transfer equation is valid in normal brain tissue but not brain tissue suffering focal ischaemia. Australas Phys Eng Sci Med 40, 841–850 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13246-017-0595-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13246-017-0595-6

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