Simulation of Atherosclerosis Progression Within Patient-Specific Carotid Artery

Computational modelling of atherosclerosis has been performed using atherosclerosis mechanisms to provide more detailed understanding of processes which lead to plaque initiation and progression. The simulation of time-dependent plaque progression includes coupled 3D reconstruction of patient-specific carotid arteries and PAK software (PAK Athero and PAK ABM) based on Finite Element Method (FEM) and Agent Based Method (ABM). A deep learning and computer-based approaches are applied for creation of 3D patient specific geometry. This approach has been under evaluation in the TAXINOMISIS clinical study, including longitudinal data collection (baseline and three follow-ups) among 345 patients with moderate to severe carotid stenosis (stenosis degree > 50%) with total duration of two years. The 3D patient-specific models of carotid arteries are created using the imaging data of those patients. Dynamic evolution of atherosclerotic plaque under different patient-specific geometries and conditions is quantified with the velocity, shear stress distribution and oxidized Low-Density Lipoprotein (LDL) concentration. The resulted values correlate with the zones of plaque formation and progression which is confirmed by comparing the formed plaque with clinical data in different time steps.