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Project Title:

Characterization of Left Ventricular Flows - Healthy and Diseased

Project Team:

Dr. Olga Pierrakos (School of Engineering, JMU)
Dr. Satyaprakash Karri (School of Engineering, JMU)
Dr. John Dent (University of Virginia)
Dr. Mike Deaton (Department of Integrated Science and Technology, JMU)
Mr. Ben Williamson (School of Engineering, JMU, Undergraduate Student)
Mr. Matthew Passagre (School of Engineering, JMU, Undergraduate Student)            

Project Description:      

It is well-known that cardiovascular disease, affecting millions of people, is the number one killer worldwide. The spectrum of cardiac diseases is broad and encompasses disorders such as myocardial ischemia, valvular disease, diastolic dysfunction, congestive heart failure (which is projected to affect 20 million people by 2020), etc.   Most of these disorders initiate and are associated to the left ventricle, which is the workhorse of the heart and the focus of our research.  Left ventricular flows by nature are intricate involving unsteadiness, inhomogeneity, anisotropy, and transition to turbulence.  Using state-of-the-art Stereo Particle Image Velocimetry (StereoPIV) capability and a heart simulator system, recently acquired with an NSF MRI grant, we investigate a variety of hemodynamic factors during both healthy and diseased flow conditions. System dynamics modeling is also a tool we plan to use to understand cardiac performance. With a focus on left ventricular flow characterization, our multi-disciplinary team investigates both healthy and diseased cardiac flows using sophisticated tools (experimental and numerical) to develop diagnostic measures that can be synergistically utilized for clinical translation.