Sensitivity of Left Atrial Flow Dynamics to Echocardiographic and Computed Tomography Data.

Abstract

Computational simulations are a powerful tool in the understanding, diagnosing, and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Incomplete clinical data often limits computational assessment, which may lead to inaccuracies. This study aims to assess the sensitivity of left atrial flow dynamics to echocardiographic and computed tomography data. Models of the LA were reconstructed at the E-wave(Geometry 1)and end-diastolic(Geometry 2)phases from CT scans. CFD simulations were carried out using 3 different sets of BCs. BC2 and BC3 presented similar results that were significantly different from BC1. The effect from the choice of geometry was significant with BC2 and BC3 but minor with BC1. Differences in parameters across the simulated cases highlight the importance of using consistent BCs and geometries for CFD studies. Acquiring the pressure in the LA does not seem to be necessary for the accuracy of CFD simulations. Validation of all simulations indicates reliable patient-specific results.