Development of biomechanical models to support the design of endovascular protheses

一般情况是血管管道的机械故障（斑块和动脉瘤破裂）和使用血管假体（支架、移植物、心脏瓣膜）进行治疗。例如，现在认为心肌梗塞的主要原因之一是动脉粥样硬化斑块的破裂。使用支架（血管内支架假体）是治疗动脉粥样硬化的一种成熟的介入方法。然而，在很大一部分（20%-30%）中，植入支架的节段可能再阻塞。这种称为支架内再狭窄（ISR）的现象主要是由平滑肌细胞增殖（增生）引起的。已经提出ISR的可能原因是血管成形术期间机械性源性壁损伤。使用断裂力学的方法应该有助于理解这些现象。

The general context is the mechanical failure of vascular conduits (plaque and aneurysm rupture) and their treatment with vascular prostheses (stents, grafts, heart valves). For example, it is now considered that one of the main causes of myocardial infarction is the rupture of an atherosclerotic plaque. The use of a stent (endovascular scaffolding prosthesis) is a well established interventional method to treat atherosclerotic arteries. However, in a significant fraction (20%-30%), the stented segment may reobstruct. This phenomenon called in-stent restenosis (ISR) is principally caused by the proliferation of smooth muscle cells (hyperplasia). It has been proposed that possible causes of ISR are wall injury of mechanical origin during angioplasty. The proposed approach using fracture mechanics should help understand these phenomena.