Virtual and real bench testing of a new percutaneous valve device: a case study

Aims: To validate patient-specific computational testing of a second-generation device for percutaneous pulmonary valve implantation (PPVI), against realistic in vitro data. Methods and results: Tests were initially carried out in a simple loading mode, performing a compliance test on a rapid prototyped cylinder. This model was reproduced computationally and validated against the experimental data. A second-generation PPVI stent-graft, with no valve mounted, was then deployed in a simplified cylindrical geometry, measuring its displacement when subjected to a pressure pulse. Experimental and computational measurements were in good agreement. Finally, having selected a patient regarded as unsuitable for first-generation PPVI, but potentially suitable for a second-generation device, the stent-graft was studied in the rapidly prototyped patient-specific right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT). Stent positioning and radial displacements with pulsatile flow were observed in a mock circuit using fluoroscopy imaging. Stent deformation and anchoring were measured both in vitro and computationally. Both tests indicated that the stent was well anchored in the RVOT, especially in the distal position, and its central region was rounded, ensuring, were a valve present, optimal valve function. Conclusion: We suggest that an experimentally validated computational model can be used for preclinical device characterisation and patient selection.