One-dimensional modelling of the coronary circulation. Application to noninvasive quantification of fractional flow reserve (FFR)

Abstract

In guiding intervention in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), measurements of fractional flow reserve (FFR) usually complement the anatomic information. With the development of noninvasive imaging and computationalbased technologies to interpret clinical data, new approaches have emerged to quantify CAD severity. In parallel with three-dimensional models, models combining lumped and one-dimensional segments have been proposed as a tool to investigate myocardium-vessel interactions. Although they have been used extensively to provide a better understanding of the dynamics of the coronary circulation, they may face a number of limitations, when used as predictive tools. We present herein an example of an open-loop model to estimate FFR values, using an ‘average’ description of the human coronary geometry.