Cardiovascular Bioengineering Laboratory
San Diego State University
Research / Cardiovascular Flow

Cardiovascular Flow

Investigating blood transport, vortex dynamics, and cardiovascular device interactions using clinical imaging, experimental flow measurements, and computational modeling.

01 / Clinical and patient-derived studies

Patient-Specific Flow & Transport

Clinical ultrasound and patient-specific experimental models reveal how disease and mechanical circulatory support influence ventricular blood transport and aortic flow.

Two-dimensional velocity field showing vortex development in the left ventricle of a heart failure patient.
Residence time is derived from the 2-D velocity field and muscle deformation maps.
Related publications

Rossini, L., et al. (2016). “A clinical method for mapping and quantifying blood stasis in the left ventricle.” Journal of Biomechanics, 49(11), 2152–2161.

Rossini, L., et al. (2021). “Non-invasive mapping of intraventricular flow patterns in patients treated with left ventricular assist devices.” ASAIO Journal, 67(1), 74–83.

CT scans are segmented
Physical model is fabricated and assembled
3-D velocity field is measured

Patient-specific flow fields are experimentally evaluated through a collaboration with Houston Methodist Hospital and the University of Texas, Houston Medical Center.

02 / Flow structures and transport

Vortex Dynamics

Our published 2-D PIV studies quantify how vortex structure and strength change with LVAD support. Current volumetric measurements extend this work to three-dimensional vortex-ring formation and evolution.

3-D velocity field
Phase-averaged velocity field of a dilated left ventricle in the cardiac simulator.
3-D vortex-ring dynamics
Q-criterion vortex-ring evolution · same normalized cardiac cycle
Related publications

Wong, K., G. Samaroo, I. Ling, W. Dembitsky, R. Adamson, J. C. del Alamo, and K. May-Newman. “Intraventricular flow patterns and stasis in the LVAD-assisted heart.” Journal of Biomechanics 47(6):1485–1494, 2014. View paper ↗

Ortiz, S., V. Vu, R. Montes, and K. May-Newman. “Left Ventricular Flow Dynamics with the HeartMate3 Left Ventricular Assist Device: Effect of Inflow Cannula Position and Speed Modulation.” ASAIO Journal 67(12):1301–1311, 2021.

Vu, V., L. Rossini, J. C. del Alamo, W. Dembitsky, R. A. Gray, and K. May-Newman. “Benchtop models of patient-specific intraventricular flow during heart failure and LVAD support.” ASME Journal of Biomechanical Engineering 145(11):111010, 2023.

03 / From measurements to credible models

Advanced Flow Measurement & Validation

We use experimental flow fields to characterize cardiovascular transport and evaluate computational predictions, building on collaborative VVUQ research with the FDA and Barcelona Supercomputing Center.

Experimental–computational validation workflow
SDSU cardiac simulator linked to computational model through geometry, operating conditions, hemodynamics, and flow-based biomarkers
Experimental inputs and flow-based biomarkers support computational model evaluation.
Experimental PIV
Experimental PIV recording of ventricular flow.
Computational CFD — BSC
BSC computational flow simulation.
Sobol sensitivity indices of ventricular flow model inputs
Sensitivity analysis: influence of model parameters on aortic and LVAD flow predictions. Click to enlarge.
Numerical and experimental aortic and LVAD flow waveforms with uncertainty ranges
Validation: comparison of numerical predictions and experimental flow measurements, including uncertainty ranges. Click to enlarge.

Santiago, A., et al. (2022). “Design and execution of a Verification, Validation, and Uncertainty Quantification plan for a numerical model of left ventricular flow after LVAD implantation.” PLOS Computational Biology, 18(6), e1010141. View publication ↗

The PIV and CFD panels illustrate complementary methods; their displayed frames are not a validated point-by-point matched comparison. Final matched imagery and CFD video processing remain to be completed.

Expanded scientific visualization