The Effect of Aortic Valve Replacement on the Coronary Perfusion - Experimental Study

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is an alternative treatment to conventional surgical aortic valve replacement for patients with aortic stenosis. Patients with severe aortic stenosis suffer also from diastolic dysfunction and reduced coronary flow (perfusion).

In this experimental study, we examine the impact of replacement valve on the coronary perfusion and on the pressure changes in the aortic root, compared with an intact valve. The method is based on flow visualization in a transparent flexible model of the aortic root, along with the pressure and flowrate measurements to coronary arteries. The flow is driven by hemodynamic pump using pulse duplicator, and contains a synchronized controlled resistance in the coronary arteries.

The study considered healthy, stenosed and TAVI valves. Pressure and flow patterns at different cardiac output and heart rates were investigated. The experimental results confirm that aortic valve replacement leads to normalization of coronary flow, although at slightly different rate as compared to the reference healthy case.