Using the mechanical bidomain model to analyze the biomechanical behavior of cardiomyocytes

Abstract

The mechanical bidomain model provides a macroscopic description of cardiac tissue biomechanics and also predicts the microscopic coupling between the extracellular matrix and the intracellular cytoskeleton of cardiomyocytes. The goal of this chapter is to introduce the mechanical bidomain model, to describe the mathematical methods required to solve the model equations, and to predict where the membrane forces acting on integrin proteins coupling the intracellular and extracellular spaces are large.