title: Collagen fibers reduce stresses and stabilize motion of aortic valve leaflets during systole.
abstract: The effect of collagen fibers on the mechanics and hemodynamics of a trileaflet aortic valve contained in a rigid aortic root is investigated in a numerical analysis of the systolic phase. Collagen fibers are known to reduce stresses in the leaflets during diastole, but their role during systole has not been investigated in detail yet. It is demonstrated that also during 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 the exponential 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, P.O. Box 513, 5600 MB, Eindhoven, The Netherlands. j.d.hart@tue.nl
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: De Hart
authors.forename: G W M
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Peters
authors.forename: P J G
authors.initials: PJ
authors.lastname: Schreurs
authors.forename: F P T
authors.initials: FP
authors.lastname: Baaijens
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000502:physiology*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D003094:Collagen / Q000502:physiology*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D006801:Humans; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D033081:Shear Strength; D013314:Stress, Mechanical; D013599:Systole / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D003094:Collagen