Abstract
BackgroundMany studies have demonstrated that the geometry of the carotid bifurcation enables prediction of blood flow variation associated with atherosclerotic plaque formation. The phase angle between the arterial wall circumferential strain and its instantaneous wall shear stress is known as stress phase angle (SPA). This parameter is used to evaluate hemodynamic factors of atherogenesis. Note that SPA can be numerically computed for the purpose of locating atherosclerosis in different artery geometries. However, there is no experimental data to verify its role in the location of atherosclerosis in different artery geometries. In this study, we use an ultrasonic biomechanical method to experimentally evaluate the role of SPA for locating atherosclerosis in carotid bifurcation.ResultsFor carotid anthropomorphic vascular phantom experiments, the SPAs of common carotid arteries (CCAs), external carotid arteries (ECAs) and internal carotid arteries (ICAs) are − 148.53 ± 6.92°, − 153.95 ± 5.11°, and − 238.69 ± 1.72°, respectively. The corresponding SPAs are − 173.47 ± 0.065°, − 115.57 ± 4.83° and − 233.9 ± 8.12° for the polyvinyl alcohol (PVA-c) phantoms. In vivo mouse experiments indicated that the wall shear stress and circumferential strain were out of phase in the ICAs (− 280.08 ± 13.12°) to a greater extent as compared to CCAs (− 141.97 ± 8.03°) and ECAs (− 170.07 ± 9.24°).ConclusionsThe results suggested that SPA may be a useful indicator to locate the atherosclerosis position in carotid bifurcation.
Highlights
Many studies have demonstrated that the geometry of the carotid bifurcation enables prediction of blood flow variation associated with atherosclerotic plaque formation
The stress phase angle (SPA) values located at the common carotid arteries (CCAs), external carotid arteries (ECAs) and WSR (1/s)
It can be observed that SPA is more negative for the internal carotid arteries (ICAs) where the atherosclerotic plaque develops
Summary
Carotid anthropomorphic vascular phantom experiments The UBM method was used to measure the measure hemodynamic parameters in the carotid anthropomorphic vascular phantom experiments. The temporal diameter and WSR curves of the CCA, ECA and ICA in the PVA phantom are shown in Fig. 5a–c, respectively. In vivo mouse carotid artery experiments The UBM method is utilized in determining the flow velocity distributions and the arterial diameter changes of the CCAs, ECAs and ICAs present in mice. Biological studies have demonstrated that negative SPA can inhibit anti-atherogenic gene expression and release, but at the same time, they increase pro-atherogenic gene expression and metabolite release [31, 32] These results proved that ECs driven by hemodynamics and wall mechanics can potentially cause a pro-atherogenic effect on regions of the local circulation. Future research with larger sample size will be required to further verify these findings [34]
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