Optimal fenestration of the Fontan circulation
Abstract
In this paper, we develop a pulsatile compartmental model of the Fontan circulation and use it to explore the effects of a fenestration added to this physiology. A fenestration is a shunt between the systemic and pulmonary veins that is added either at the time of Fontan conversion or at a later time for the treatment of complications. This shunt increases cardiac output and decreases systemic venous pressure. However, these hemodynamic benefits are achieved at the expense of a decrease in the arterial oxygen saturation. The model developed this paper incorporates fenestration size as a parameter and describes both blood flow and oxygen transport. It is calibrated to clinical data from Fontan patients, and we use it to study the impact of a fenestration on several hemodynamic variables. In certain scenarios corresponding to high-risk Fontan physiology, we demonstrate the existence of an optimal fenestration size that maximizes oxygen delivery to the systemic tissues.
Keywords
Cite
@article{arxiv.2202.01104,
title = {Optimal fenestration of the Fontan circulation},
author = {Zan Ahmad and Lynn H. Jin and Daniel J. Penny and Craig G. Rusin and Charles S. Peskin and Charles Puelz},
journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2202.01104},
year = {2022}
}