Mitral valve (MV) annuloplasty consists in reshaping the native mitral annulus (MA) through a prosthetic ring to treat mitral regurgitation (MR). Several rings are available to clinicians, but none of them is optimal for the treatment of MR. The ring design will benefit from the detailed knowledge of the forces experienced by the MA. In the present study, in vivo MA forces were assessed in humans for the first time, using patient-specific MV finite element models based on CMR imaging. The analysis of MA forces showed that they do not act only radially, as usually assumed, and that the contribution of their axial component, perpendicular to the valvular plane, is even more relevant. These data may be used to identify an optimal trade-off between annular reshaping and the preservation of its dynamics.
Computational assessment of in vivo mitral annular forces: implications for annuloplasty ring design
STEVANELLA, MARCO;VOTTA, EMILIANO;CAIANI, ENRICO GIANLUCA;REDAELLI, ALBERTO CESARE LUIGI
2012-01-01
Abstract
Mitral valve (MV) annuloplasty consists in reshaping the native mitral annulus (MA) through a prosthetic ring to treat mitral regurgitation (MR). Several rings are available to clinicians, but none of them is optimal for the treatment of MR. The ring design will benefit from the detailed knowledge of the forces experienced by the MA. In the present study, in vivo MA forces were assessed in humans for the first time, using patient-specific MV finite element models based on CMR imaging. The analysis of MA forces showed that they do not act only radially, as usually assumed, and that the contribution of their axial component, perpendicular to the valvular plane, is even more relevant. These data may be used to identify an optimal trade-off between annular reshaping and the preservation of its dynamics.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
