Collagen fibers reduce stresses and stabilize motion of aortic valve leaflets during systole

J. Hart, de, G.W.M. Peters, P.J.G. Schreurs, F.P.T. Baaijens

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Abstract

The effect of collagen fibers on the mechanics and hemodynamics of a trileaflet aortic valve contained in a rigid aorticroot is investigated in a numerical analysis of the systolic phase. Collagen fibers are known to reduce stresses in theleaflets during diastole, but their role during systole has not been investigated in detail yet. It is demonstrated that alsoduring systole these fibers substantially reduce stresses in the leaflets and provide smoother opening and closing.Compared to isotropic leaflets, collagen reinforcement reduces the fluttering motion of the leaflets. Due to theexponential stress-strain behavior of collagen, the fibers have little influence on the initial phase of the valve opening,which occurs at low strains, and therefore have little impact on the transvalvular pressure drop.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)303-311
JournalJournal of Biomechanics
Volume37
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2004

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