Pilot Study on the Correlation Between Fistula Hemodynamics in End Stage Renal Disease and Pulmonary Artery Hemodynamics Grant uri icon

abstract

  • Permanent structural damage to the kidneys results in chronic kidney disease, a condition affecting over 15% of Americans. Over time, this can develop into end-stage renal disease (ESRD), which is associated with a number of comorbidities. One of these comorbidities is pre-capillary pulmonary hypertension (PH) and is believed to be connected to the creation of arteriovenous fistulas for use in hemodialysis; however, there is little conclusive evidence supporting this hypothesis. The objective of this project is to correlate fistula and pulmonary artery hemodynamics to better understand PH development in ESRD patients and engage in a preliminary analyses to connect these parameters to standard clinical measures for early identification and monitoring. ; To accomplish this goal, patient-specific fistula and pulmonary artery models will be developed from magnetic resonance images, and subsequently analyzed using computational fluid dynamics to determine the 3D flow field (velocity, wall shear stress, pressure gradients). ; These parameters have demonstrated clinical utility individually in the fistula and pulmonary artery, however comparisons between the two have not been done. ; The results of this project have both technical and societal implications as they have potential to expand understanding of the mechanism behind PH development in ESRD patients and reduce ethnic and age-related health disparities associated with ESRD by offering non-invasive and patient-specific information about fistula and pulmonary artery hemodynamics.

date/time interval

  • January 2019