Open Access

ARTICLE

Numerical Analyses of Idealized Total Cavopulmonary Connection Physiologies with Single and Bilateral Superior Vena Cava Assisted by an Axial Blood Pump

Xudong Liu¹, Yunhan Cai¹, Bing Jia², Shengzhang Wang^1,*, Guanghong Ding¹

1 Institute of Biomechanics, Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, China.
2 Cardiovascular Center, Children’s Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201102, China.

*Corresponding Author: Shengzhang Wang. Email: .

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Innovations and Current Trends in Computational Cardiovascular Modeling: Molecular, Cellular, Tissue and Organ Biomechanics with Clinical Applications)

Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2018, 116(2), 215-228. https://doi.org/10.31614/cmes.2018.04158

Abstract

Our study evaluated the hemodynamic performance of an axial flow blood pump surgically implanted in idealized total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) models. This blood pump was designed to augment pressure from the inferior vena cava (IVC) to the pulmonary circulation. Two Fontan procedures with single and bilateral superior vena cava (SVC) were compared to fit the mechanical supported TCPC physiologies. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analyses of two Pump-TCPC models were performed in the analyses. Pressure-flow characteristics, energy efficiency, fluid streamlines, hemolysis and thrombosis analyses were implemented. Numerical simulations indicate that the pump produces pressure generations of 1 mm to 24 mm Hg for rotational speeds ranging from 2000 RPM to 5000 RPM and flow rates of 2 LPM to 4 LPM. Two surgical models incorporated with the pump were found to be insignificant in pressure augmentation and energy boost. The risk assessment of blood trauma and thrombosis generation was evaluated representatively through blood damage index (BDI), particle resident time (PRT) and relative resistant time (RRT). The hemolysis and thrombosis analyses declare the advantage of the pump supported bilateral SVC surgical scheme in balancing flow distribution and reducing the risk of endothelial cell destruction and trauma generation.

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Keywords

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