A Computational Analysis of the Impact of Blood’s Viscoelastic Properties on the Hemodynamics of a Stenosed Artery

Treatment of atherosclerotic diseases, including stenosis and arterial aneurysms, requires a more accurate prediction of hemodynamic flow features. In addition to the degree of stenosis and the body’s physiological state, blood rheology substantially impacts the haemodynamics of a stenosed artery. The current study shows how the assessment of hemodynamic wall indicators is affected when blood viscoelasticity is taken into account as opposed to when it is ignored. For this, multi-mode Giesekus and Simplified Phan-Thein/Tanner (sPTT) models were used to mimic the rheology of real and whole blood. The finite volume-based solver rheoFOAM, part of the rheoTOOL package, was used to run numerical simulations in a planar 75% stenosed artery. The Newtonian and Carreau-Yasuda model (for purely shear thinning fluid) were also used to carry out numerical simulations, together with the non-linear viscoelastic models. The post-stenotic zone’s temporal streamwise velocity evolution at various planes demonstrates how the flow separation zone’s size and symmetry rely on the blood’s rheology. When the blood’s elasticity is taken into account, there are much fewer reattachment points, which is a sign of the number of recirculation zones along the artery wall during one cardiac cycle. Additionally, non-linear viscoelastic models predict higher values of hemodynamic wall indicators than the Newtonian and Carreau–Yasuda models. The current data demonstrate that the blood’s rheology cannot be discarded when computational fluid dynamics simulations are employed as a tool in the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of severely stenosed arteries.