Optimal B-spline Mapping of Flow Imaging Data for Imposing Patient-specific Velocity Profiles in Computational Hemodynamics

OBJECTIVE: We propose a novel method to obtainmap patient-specific blood velocity profiles (obtained from imaging data such as 2D flow MRI or 3D colour Doppler ultrasound) and map them to geometric vascular models suitable to perform CFD simulations of haemodynamics. We describe the implementation and utilisation of the method within an open-source computational hemodynamics simulation software (CRIMSON). METHODS: tThe proposed method establishes point-wise correspondences between the contour of a fixed geometric model and time-varying contours containing the velocity image data, from which a continuous, smooth and cyclic deformation field is calculated. Our methodology is validated using synthetic data, and demonstrated using two different in-vivo aortic velocity datasets: a healthy subject with normal tricuspid valve and a patient with bicuspid aortic valve. RESULTS: We compare the performance of our method with results obtained with the state-of-the-art Schwarz-Christoffel method, in terms of preservation of velocities and execution time. Our method is as accurate as the Schwarz-Christoffel method, while being over 8 times faster. The proposed method can preserve either the flow rate or the velocity field through the surface, and can cope with inconsistencies in motion and contour shape. CONCLUSIONS: Our results show that the method is as accurate as the Schwarz-Christoffel method in terms of maintaining the velocity distributions, while being more computationally efficient.Our mapping method can accurately preserve either the flow rate or the velocity field through the surface, and can cope with inconsistencies in motion and contour shape. SIGNIFICANCE: The proposed method and its integration into the CRIMSON software enable a streamlined approach towards incorporating more patient-specific data in blood flow simulations.