The safety and efficacy of a prosthetic cardiovascular device critically depends on competing hemodynamic factors governing blood trauma and thrombosis. Unlike the aerospace industry which uses advanced design methods such as computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to optimize aerodynamics, the medical device industry has no analogous tool to optimize hemodynamics. The proposed project will address this need by developing innovative software that combines the best technologies available in aerospace optimization with those in cardiovascular device development. The resulting product will enable automated optimization of cardiovascular devices for minimal hemolysis and thrombogenicity. Preliminary work by our group applied to rotary cardiac-assist devices has demonstrated the effectiveness of this design approach. In Phase I, we propose to streamline, enhance and integrate our current design processes into a functional computer program. During Phase II, versatile, user-friendly commercial grade software for the design and analysis of blood-contacting fluid devices will be developed. The proposed project will provide a rational basis for analyzing and optimizing prosthetic cardiovascular devices such that device-induced blood trauma can be both predicted and minimized. Commercially, the proposed software will be the first product of its kind on the market specifically designed for the cardiovascular device industry.
The potential users of this design software include any individual, group, or company engaged in cardiovascular device development. The market may be extended beyond medical applications, to virtually all enterprises involving computational fluid dynamics design. Because this is the first product of its kind, Antakamatics optimistically envisions this software gradually gaining foothold as the pre-eminent design software for cardiovascular device developers -- much like ANSYS, Patran, AutoCAD, etc. have become ubiquitous in the automotive and aerospace industry.
