title: A modified nonpulsatile flow system for the in vitro study of cardiac valve prostheses.
abstract: An in vitro system was constructed for measurements of resistance to forward flow by cardiac valve prostheses at a wide spectrum of flow rates. There was a close correlation between the known area of constriction (valvular orifice) and that calculated from the flow/pressure relationship using derivations of the Bernoulli equation. This simple setup appears particularly suited to determine hydrodynamic efficiency of various cardiac valve concepts on a comparative basis.
mesh_terms: D006350:Heart Valve Prosthesis; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D012212:Rheology