Numerical investigation of the blood flow through the middle cerebral artery

Abstract

Introduction: The middle cerebral artery (MCA) is one of the three major paired arteries that supply the blood to the cerebrum. In the present study, the three-dimensional (3D) blood flow in the left MCA was numerically simulated by using the medical imaging. Methods: The arterial geometry was obtained by applying the CT angiography of the MCA of a 75-year-old man. The blood flow was assumed to be laminar and unsteady. Numerical simulations were done by commercial software package COMSOL Multiphysics 5.2. In this software, the Galerkin’s finite element method was applied to solve the governing equations. Results: It was found that the results obtained for the Newtonian and non-Newtonian models of blood do not differ from each other significantly. Thus, the Newtonian model for blood flow in the MCA is acceptable. Also, the most susceptible region of the MCA for Atherosclerosis was detected. Conclusion: It can be concluded that the application of the Newtonian model for the blood flowing in the MCA is acceptable. Also, atherosclerosis has the potential to occur at the middle of a branch of the MCA which has the highest geometrical curvature.

Keywords

• middle cerebral artery
• hemodynamics
• non-newtonian model
• finite element method