Anisotropic Mass-Spring Method Accurately Simulates Mitral Valve Closure from Image-Based Models

Abstract

Heart valves are functionally complex, making surgical repair difficult. Simulation-based surgical planning could facilitate repair, but current finite element studies are prohibitively slow for rapid, clinically-oriented simulations. An anisotropic, nonlinear mass-spring (M-S) model is used to approximate the behavior of valve leaflets and applied to fully image-based mitral valve models to simulate valve closure for fast applications like intraoperative surgical planning. This approach is used to simulate a technique used in valve repair and to assess the role of chordae in determining the closed configuration of the valve. Direct image-based comparison is used for validation. Results of M-S model simulations showed that it is possible to build fully image-based models of the mitral valve and to rapidly simulate closure with sub-millimeter accuracy. Chordae, which are presently difficult to image, are shown to be strong determinants of closed valve shape.