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Distribution of stress and strain along the porcine aorta and coronary arterial tree

Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine, California 92697-2715

Submitted 1 December 2003 ; accepted in final form 29 January 2004

The existence of a homeostatic state of stresses and strains has been axiomatic in the cardiovascular system. The objective of this study was to determine the distribution of circumferential stress and strain along the aorta and throughout the coronary arterial tree to test this hypothesis. Silicone elastomer was perfused through the porcine aorta and coronary arterial tree to cast the arteries at physiological pressure. The loaded and zero-stress dimensions of the vessels were measured. The aorta (1.8 cm) and its secondary branches were considered down to 1.5 mm diameter. The left anterior descending artery (4.5 mm) and its branches down to 10 µm were also measured. The Cauchy mean circumferential stress and midwall stretch ratio were calculated. Our results show that the stretch ratio and Cauchy stress were lower in the thoracic than in the abdominal aorta and its secondary branches. The opening angle () and midwall stretch ratio () showed a linear variation with order number (n) as follows: = 10.2n + 63.4 (R² = 0.989) and = 4.47 x 10^–2n + 1.1 (R² = 0.995). Finally, the stretch ratio and stress varied between 1.2 and 1.6 and between 10 and 150 kPa, respectively, along the aorta and left anterior descending arterial tree. The relative uniformity of strain (50% variation) from the proximal aorta to a 10-µm arteriole implies that the vascular system closely regulates the degree of deformation. This suggests a homeostasis of strain in the cardiovascular system, which has important implications for mechanotransduction and for vascular growth and remodeling.

uniform strain hypothesis; opening angle; homeostasis; wall thickness

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