Haemodynamic Effects on the Development and Stability of Atherosclerotic Plaques in Arterial Blood Vessel.

Abstract

Studying the formation and stability of atherosclerotic plaques in the hemodynamic field is essential for understanding the growth mechanism and preventive treatment of atherosclerotic plaques. In this paper, based on a multiplayer porous wall model, we established a two-way fluid-solidinteraction with time-varyinginlet flow. The lipid-rich necrotic core (LRNC) and stress in atherosclerotic plaque were described for analyzing the stability of atherosclerotic plaques during the plaque growth by solving advection-diffusion-reaction equations with finite-element method. It was found that LRNC appeared when the lipid levels of apoptotic materials (such as macrophages, foam cells) in the plaque reacheda specified lowerconcentration, and increased with the plaque growth. LRNC was positively correlated with the blood pressure and was negatively correlated with the blood flow velocity. The maximum stress wasmainlylocatedat the necrotic core and graduallymovedtoward the left shoulder of the plaque with the plaque growth, which increases the plaque instability and the risk of the plaque shedding. The computational model may contribute to understanding the mechanisms of early atherosclerotic plaque growth and the risk of instability in the plaque growth.