Radial compliance of porcine coronary arteries ex vivo under pulsatile flow – perspectives for stent biomechanics

Abstract Besides visual assessment of the intra-vascular appearance, intravascular optical coherence tomography (IVOCT) enables precise diameter measurements within the coronary arteries. The current study presents an upgraded test setup allowing the investigation of the elastic properties of porcine coronary arteries ex vivounder pulsatile flow conditions. IV-OCT imaging was performed within the left circumflex artery of a porcine heart applying a normotensive and a hypertensive pressure regime at different pulse rates. Radial compliance was derived from the luminal diameter as well as intra-arterial pressure measurements. Test results show a significant reduction of radial compliance under pulsatile conditions, when compared to reference measurements under steady flow. The mean radial compliance decreased with increasing pulse rate, which can be attributed to the viscoelastic properties of the arterial wall.