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Effects of guiding vanes and orifice jet flow of a metered-dose inhaler on drug dosimetry in human respiratory tract

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Abstract

Accurate modeling and simulation of metered-dose inhaler (MDI) drug delivery require detailed information about the spray aerosols and carrier airflows, which are sensitive to the geometry and formulation of the inhaler. This study aimed to systemically examine the effects of the MDI canister-holder guiding vanes and the orifice airflow on inhalation dosimetry. An MDI model was reconstructed from an actual inhaler that included a 0.5-mm-diameter orifice and six vertical guiding vanes on the inner wall of the canister-holder. Large-eddy simulation was used to capture the transient concurrent inspiratory and orifice airflows, and spray aerosols were tracked using the Lagrangian method. Measured aerosol size distribution and velocity were used to develop the computational model. Results show that MDI spray plume transport and deposition are sensitive to the instantaneous flow structures. Excluding the guiding vanes increased the mouth deposition by 8% (from 60% to 68%), while excluding the orifice jet flow decreased the mouth deposition by 5.5% (from 60% to 54.5%) compared to the control case. The impact of these two geometrical and flow details could persist in the small airways. The penetration rate to the left-lower lobe beyond the nineth generation (G9) increased by 67% when neglecting guiding vanes and increased by 50% when neglecting orifice flow.

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Abbreviations

CFC:

chlorofluorocarbons

COPD:

chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

CT:

computerized tomography

DEF:

deposition enhancement factor

DF:

deposition fraction

fps:

frames per second

G9:

ninth generation

HFA:

hydrofluoroalkane

IC:

inspiratory capacity

LES:

large-eddy simulation

LU, LL, RU, RM, RL:

left upper, left lower, right upper, right middle, right lower

MDI:

metered-dose inhaler

NWI:

near-wall interpolation

PDA:

phase doppler anemometry

PR:

penetration rate

ROI:

region of interest

TB:

tracheobronchial region

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by the Start-up Fund from the University of Massachusetts, Lowell (Fund No. 51425).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Aerospace, Industrial, and Mechanical Engineering, California Baptist University, 8432 Magnolia Ave, Riverside, CA, 92504, USA

    Xiuhua A. Si

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Massachusetts, 1 University Ave., Lowell, MA, 01854, USA

    Mohamed Talaat & Jinxiang Xi

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  1. Xiuhua A. Si
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  2. Mohamed Talaat
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Correspondence to Jinxiang Xi.

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Si, X.A., Talaat, M. & Xi, J. Effects of guiding vanes and orifice jet flow of a metered-dose inhaler on drug dosimetry in human respiratory tract. Exp. Comput. Multiph. Flow 5, 247–261 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42757-022-0141-y

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