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Biomedical subjects

J T Baldwin

Publications and source records attributed to J T Baldwin.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

Fluid dynamics of the CarboMedics kinetic bileaflet prosthetic heart valve.

OBJECTIVE: To compare hydrodynamic characteristics of a new bileaflet heart valve, the CarboMedics kinetic cardiac valve prosthesis, with those of a St. Jude Medical (SJM) heart valve. METHODS: Hydrodynamic characteristics were determined in the mitral and aortic positions of a Vivitro Systems pulse duplicator for size 23 Kinetic aortic values, size 23 SJM aortic valves, size 29 Kinetic mitral valves and size 29 SJM mitral valves. Test conditions were 72 beats per min with cardiac outputs of 2, 5 and 7 l/min. Values of forward flow pressure drop (delta P), regurgitant and energy loss were determined for each valve. The test results for the two valve designs were compared by valve size. RESULTS: The test results show that both the size 23 and size 29 Kinetic valves have 8-14% lower delta P values and 5-10% greater effective orifice area (EOA) values. The size 29 Kinetic mitral valve has a 1-2 ml lower regurgitant volume, while the size 23 Kinetic aortic valve has a 0.5 ml greater regurgitant volume than the corresponding SJM values. These factors combine to provide a 5-10% lower energy loss for size 23 Kinetic aortic valves and a 15-25% lower energy loss for size 29 Kinetic mitral valves over the cardiac cycle than for corresponding sizes of SJM valves. CONCLUSIONS: The Kinetic valve's fluid dynamics are superior to equivalent sizes of SJM valves. This is especially impressive considering that the tissue annulus diameters for Kinetic valves are approximately 0.5 mm less than equivalent size SJM valves. The primary reasons for the superior hydrodynamic performance of Kinetic valves are (1) the larger orifices which result in lower forward flow delta P values and (2) the opening angles, which have been customized for each valve size to minimize energy loss.

Aortic Valve↗

LDA measurements of mean velocity and Reynolds stress fields within an artificial heart ventricle.

Laser Doppler Anemometry measurements of mean (ensemble average) velocities and turbulent (Reynolds) stresses at 140 locations within the left ventricle of the Penn State 70 cc electric artificial heart/ventricular assist device are reported at 8 times during the cardiac cycle. Mean velocity patterns indicate that the surfaces of the blood sac and valve tracts are exposed to significant levels of wall shear stress (good wall washing) during some portion of the flow cycle, and there is no location where the flow is stagnant over the entire flow cycle. This implies that thrombus deposition within the artificial heart should be suppressed. Turbulent stresses in the main pumping chamber and the outflow tracts of the tilting disk valves do not exceed 2000 dynes/cm2. The highest turbulent stresses (20,000 dynes/cm2) and smallest turbulent microscales (6 microns) are found in the regurgitant jets on the minor orifice side of the aortic valve during diastole and the mitral valve during systole. Taken together, the data suggest that improvements in artificial heart fluid mechanics will come through valve design and pump operating conditions, not pumping chamber design.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

Determination of principal reynolds stresses in pulsatile flows after elliptical filtering of discrete velocity measurements.

The purpose of this study was to develop a method to accurately determine mean velocities and Reynolds stresses in pulsatile flows. The pulsatile flow used to develop this method was produced within a transparent model of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Velocity measurements were taken at locations within the LVAD using a two-component laser Doppler anemometry (LDA) system. At each measurement location, as many as 4096 realizations of two coincident orthogonal velocity components were collected during preselected time windows over the pump cycle. The number of realizations was varied to determine how the number of data points collected affects the accuracy of the results. The duration of the time windows was varied to determine the maximum window size consistent with an assumption of pseudostationary flow. Erroneous velocity realizations were discarded from individual data sets by implementing successive elliptical filters on the velocity components. The mean velocities and principal Reynolds stresses were determined for each of the filtered data sets. The filtering technique, while eliminating less than 5 percent of the original data points, significantly reduced the computed Reynolds stresses. The results indicate that, with proper filtering, reasonable accuracy can be achieved using a velocity data set of 250 points, provided the time window is small enough to ensure pseudostationary flow (typically 20 to 40 ms). The results also reveal that the time window which is required to assume pseudostationary flow varies with location and cycle time and can range from 100 ms to less than 20 ms.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Blood Flow Velocity↗

Hot-film wall shear probe measurements inside a ventricular assist device.

Wall shear rates at eleven sites within the Penn State Electric Ventricular Assist Device (EVAD) were determined with the pump operating under conditions of 30 and 50 percent systolic duration and a mean flow rate of 5.8 L/min using a flush-mounted hot-film probe. Probe calibrations were performed with the hot-film in two orientations relative to the flow direction: a standard orientation and an orientation in which the hot-film was rotated by 90 deg from the standard orientation. The magnitude and direction of the wall shear stress at each site within the EVAD were estimated from ensemble averaged voltage data recorded for similar standard and rotated film orientations. The results indicate that, during diastole the wall shear stress direction around the pump's periphery for both operating conditions is predominantly perpendicular to the inflow-outflow plane (in the direction of the pusher plate motion) and reaches a peak value of approximately 350 dynes/cm2. The highest wall shear stresses were found near the prosthetic aortic valve (inside the EVAD) under the 30 percent systolic duration condition and are estimated to be as high as 2700 dynes/cm2. Peak shear stress values of 1400 dynes/cm2 were observed in the vicinity of the prosthetic mitral valve under both operating conditions. The results suggested that the valve regions are substantially more hemolytic than other wall regions of the EVAD; the magnitudes of the wall shear stresses are sensitive to operating conditions; and that wall shear in the direction of pusher plate motion can be significant.

Assisted Circulation↗

Mean flow velocity patterns within a ventricular assist device.

A laser Doppler anemometry system was used to measure fluid velocities at 127 locations within a plexiglas model of the 70 cm3 Penn State electric ventricular assist device (VAD) fitted with Bjork-Shiley convexo-concave tilting disk valves. The velocity measurements were made using a seeded blood analog fluid that matched the kinematic viscosity of blood and the refractive index of plexiglas. At each location, 250 instantaneous velocity realizations were collected at eight instances during the pump cycle. The data were filtered and averaged to calculate mean (ensemble averaged) velocities. The results indicate that the largest mean velocities are created during systole in the VADs outlet tract, and during diastole in the major orifice of the mitral valve. A single vortex centered roughly about the axis of the cylindrical portion of the pump is created during early diastole. This vortex, which persists into early systole, provides good washing of the VAD walls. However, it does appear to impede the flow entering the VAD through the minor orifice of the mitral valve. High velocities also occur during diastole along the minor orifice wall of the outlet tract and are directed into the chamber. These retrograde velocities suggest the presence of a regurgitant jet near the wall of the prosthetic valve.

Blood Flow Velocity↗

Mean velocities and Reynolds stresses within regurgitant jets produced by tilting disc valves.

Fluid velocities were measured with a two-component laser Doppler anemometry system in the regurgitant jet regions of Bjork-Shiley Delrin monostrut tilting disc valves mounted within a Plexiglas model of the 70 cm3 Penn State electric left ventricular assist device. At each measurement location, 250 instantaneous velocity realizations were collected at times when regurgitation through the valves occurred. The maximum Reynolds shear and normal stresses were calculated after filtering the data. Results show that Reynolds shear and normal stresses proximal to the mitral valve were elevated to magnitudes of 9,000 dynes/cm2 and 20,000 dynes/cm2, respectively. The peak Reynolds stresses near the mitral valve occurred during early systole, when regurgitant jet velocities reached magnitudes as high as 440 cm/sec. The Reynolds shear and normal stresses proximal to the aortic valve reached magnitudes of 9,900 dynes/cm2 and 20,500 dynes/cm2, respectively. The peak Reynolds stresses near the aortic valve occurred during early diastole, when regurgitant jet velocities were as high as 280 cm/sec. These high Reynolds stresses created by turbulent regurgitant flow have the potential to cause significant blood damage.

Aortic Valve↗

Estimation of Reynolds stresses within the Penn State left ventricular assist device.

Fluid velocities were measured using a two-component laser Doppler anemometery (LDA) system at 129 locations within a Plexiglas model of a 70 cm3 Penn State electric Left Ventricular Assist Device (LVAD). The LVAD was driven by a pulsatile piston pump acting on an attached segmented polyurethane diaphragm. Bjork-Shiley tilting disc valves were used to provide unidirectional flow through the inlet and outlet ports. A seeded blood analog fluid, which matched the kinematic viscosity of blood at high shear rates and the refractive index of Plexiglas, was used to make the measurements. At each location, 250 instantaneous velocity realizations were collected at eight instances during the pump cycle. The maximum Reynolds shear and normal stresses were calculated for each pump cycle time and location after filtering the data. The results reveal that the highest Reynolds shear and normal stresses occur in the near wall region just proximal to the aortic valve during diastole, and reach values of 5,300 dynes/cm2 and 10,800 dynes/cm2, respectively. The elevated turbulent stresses are observed during the period of regurgitant flow through the aortic valve, with peak stress values arising during the period of peak regurgitant flow. This supports the hypothesis that a regurgitant turbulent jet is formed near the wall of the prosthetic aortic valve and may be contributing to blood damage.

Blood Flow Velocity↗