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Age-Dependent Ascending Aorta Mechanics Assessed Through Multiphase CT

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Abstract

Quantification of the age- and gender-specific in vivo mechanical characteristics of the ascending aorta (AA) will allow for identification of abnormalities aside from changes brought on by aging alone. Multiphase clinical CT scans of 45 male patients between the ages of 30 and 79 years were analyzed to assess age-dependent in vivo AA characteristics. The three-dimensional AA geometry for each patient was reconstructed from the CT scans for 9–10 phases throughout the cardiac cycle. The AA circumference was measured during each phase and was used to determine the corresponding diameter, circumferential strain, and wall tension at each phase. The pressure-strain modulus was also determined for each patient. The mean diastolic AA diameter was significantly smaller among young (42.6 ± 5.2 years) at 29.9 ± 2.8 mm than old patients (69.0 ± 5.2 years) at 33.2 ± 3.2 mm. The circumferential AA strain from end-diastole to peak-systole decreased from 0.092 ± 0.03 in young to 0.056 ± 0.03 in old patients. The pressure–strain modulus increased two-fold from 68.4 ± 30.5 kPa in young to 162.0 ± 93.5 kPa in old patients, and the systolic AA wall tension increased from 268.5 ± 31.3 kPa in young to 304.9 ± 49.2 kPa in old patients. The AA dilates and stiffens with aging which increases the vessel wall tension, likely predisposing aneurysm and dissection.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported in part by the NIH HL108239 and HL104080 grants. Caitlin Martin is supported by NIH NRSA pre-doctoral fellowship HL112632. The authors would also like to thank Qian Wang and Alexander Werne for collecting and processing the CT image data.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflicts of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Tissue Mechanics Laboratory, Biomedical Engineering Program and Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Connecticut, 207 Bronwell Building, Storrs, CT, 06269-3139, USA

    Caitlin Martin & Wei Sun

  2. Department of Cardiology, Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT, 06106, USA

    Charles Primiano & Raymond McKay

  3. Aortic Institute at Yale-New Haven, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06510, USA

    John Elefteriades

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  1. Caitlin Martin
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  2. Wei Sun
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Correspondence to Wei Sun.

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Associate Editor Jane Grande-Allen oversaw the review of this article.

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Martin, C., Sun, W., Primiano, C. et al. Age-Dependent Ascending Aorta Mechanics Assessed Through Multiphase CT. Ann Biomed Eng 41, 2565–2574 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-013-0856-9

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