Fluid dynamics modelling of thrombus formation and endovascular treatment of brain aneurysms

A brain aneurysm is a life-threatening vascular distension routinely treated upon discovery. Common treatments for aneurysms involve a stent or a coil that aims to redirect blood flow away from the aneurysm. This triggers blood clotting and causes the aneurysm to heal and eliminates it from circulation.

Clot formation in human blood is complex, and its effects on brain aneurysms are still not fully understood. In this project, mathematical models for thrombus formation will be coupled with three-dimensional blood flow models to make patient-specific predictions of how the clot will develop after the intervention and predict its stability, a crucial aspect of successful treatment. The project will focus on: (i) modelling the effect of pharmacological agents on clot formation, (ii) long-term predictions, including the elimination of the aneurysm, and (iii) acceleration of the models to allow the simulations to be performed at scale as part of virtual in-silico trials.

Figure 1: Virtual treatment planning model for flow diversion in cerebral, analysis of post-treatment clotting in two different flow scenarios (courtesy of Dr Ali Sarrami-Foroushani)