Numerical Investigation of Blood Flow in Arteries with Different Stenosis Geometries

Arterial stenosis causes a dramatic change in the hemodynamic characteristics of an artery, including the pressure drop distribution along with velocity fields and wall shear stress (WSS), which are important indicators for the development of disease and its potential treatment. A comparative numerical study is reported here of blood flow in semicircular and trapezoidal stenosis domains for different degrees of 25%, 50% and 75% degree of blockage. The hemodynamic conditions were then investigated in CFD simulations at an average Reynolds number of 132.5. The findings show that stenosis severity and geometry have significant impact on the Post Stenotic flow disturbances, WSS distribution and velocity streamlines. Trapezoidal stenoses resulted in sharper velocity gradients and higher localized WSS than those of the semicircular stenoses, which indicated a more hazardous condition against arterial wall damage and rupture. Degree of stenosis correspondingly increased hemodynamic disturbances in all situations, with 75% blockage having the most severe flow disturbance. The clinical relevance of stenosis geometry for diagnostic work-up and therapeutic strategies is underlined by these findings. The results provide a valuable insight to vascular biomechanics and contribute to the formulation of geometry-dependent approaches for more accurate diagnosis and therapy in cardiovascular diseases.