CFD Simulation and Validation of Flow in Small Arteries to Enable Further Drug Delivery Studies

• Published in: Revista Facultad de Ingeniería no. 97; pp. 78 - 86
• Main Authors: Mercado-Montoya, Marcela, Cruz-Jiménez, Juan Carlos, Hernandez, Alher Mauricio
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Portuguese
• Published: Medellín Universidad de Antioquía 01.10.2020; Facultad de Ingeniería, Universidad de Antioquia; Universidad de Antioquia
• Subjects: Arteries; Boundary conditions; Computational fluid dynamics; Computer simulation; Convergence; Drug delivery systems; ENGINEERING, MULTIDISCIPLINARY; experimental validation; Finite element analysis; Finite element method; Flow velocity; Fluid flow; localized drug delivery; Nanoparticles; Neurological diseases; Partial differential equations; Qualitative analysis; Sensors; Side effects; Simulation; Veins & arteries; Velocity distribution; validación experimental; Computational fluid dynamics; distribución localizada de fármacos; experimental validation; análisis de elementos finitos; localized drug delivery; Dinámica de fluidos computacional; finite element analysis
• ISSN: 0120-6230; 2422-2844; 2422-2844
• DOI: 10.17533/udea.redin.20191257

Treatments based on nanocarriers such as nanoparticles have emerged as alternatives to overcome common limitations and side effects caused by traditional treatments against cancer and neurological diseases. The main attribute of nanoparticles stems from the fact that they can transport pharmacological agents in a guided manner. This allows drugs to selectively target diseased rather than healthy tissues. This work was aimed at modeling and simulating fluid flow inside small arteries and experimentally validating the model through quantitative measurements of pressure and flow rates. The validity of the model was evaluated in the light of different indexes of percentage agreement between simulated and measured values. The model was previously verified via mesh convergence analysis and qualitative observations of velocity profile. Our findings provide a robust basis for studying nanoparticle transport in arteries as the developed platform enables their releasing and remote manipulation both in silico and in vitro.