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ARTICLE

Fluid-Structure Interaction Simulation of Aqueous Outflow System in Response to Juxtacanalicular Meshwork Permeability Changes with a Two-Way Coupled Method

Jing Zhang^1,2,3, Xiuqing Qian^1,2, Haixia Zhang^1,2, Zhicheng Liu^1,2,*

1 School of Biomedical Engineering, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China .
2 Beijing Key Laboratory of Fundamental Research on Biomechanics in Clinical Application, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100069, China.
3 College of Medical Imaging, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, 221004, China.

*Corresponding Author: Zhicheng Liu. 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), 301-314. https://doi.org/10.31614/cmes.2018.04239

Abstract

Elevated intraocular pressure appears to have a broader impact on increased resistance to aqueous humor outflow through the conventional aqueous outflow system (AOS). However, there is still no consensus about exact location of the increased outflow resistance of aqueous humor, and the mechanism is not perfect. In addition, it is difficult to accurately obtain hydrodynamic parameters of aqueous humor within the trabecular meshwork outflow pathways based on the current technology. In this paper, a two-way fluid-structure interaction simulation was performed to study the pressure difference and velocity in the superficial trabecular meshwork, juxtacanalicular meshwork (JCM) and Schlemm’s canal in response to JCM permeability changes. We obtained the JCM permeability of normal intraocular pressure varied between 1×10−15 m2 and 10×10−15 m2 while permeability of the JCM ranged from 2×10−16 m2 and 3×10−16 m2 under conditions of high intraocular pressure. The study indicated that the fluid dynamics parameters in trabecular meshwork and Schlemm’s canal are most significantly affected by the changes of JCM permeability. Moreover, the study demonstrates that the finite element modeling of AOS provides a practical means for studying the outflow dynamics and the biomechanical environment of the AOS.

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