Modeling and simulation of blood flow with magnetic nanoparticles as carrier for targeted drug delivery in the stenosed artery

A systematic study on targeted drug delivery is carried out in an unsteady flow of blood infused with magnetic nanoparticles with an aim to understand the flow pattern and nanoparticle aggregation in a diseased arterial segment having atherosclerosis. The magnetic NPs(nanoparticles) are supervised by a magnetic field, which is significant for the therapeutic treatment of arterial diseases, tumors, and cancer cells and removing blood clots. Coupled thermal energy equation has been modeled by considering the dissipation of energy that encounters due to the application of the magnetic field and the presence of high viscosity of blood. The simulation technique used to solve the mathematical model is vorticity-stream function formulations in the diseased artery. An elevation in SLP (Specific loss power) is noted in the aortic bloodstream when the agglomeration of nanoparticles is higher. This phenomenon has potential applications in the treatment of hyperthermia. The study focuses on the lowering of WSS (wall shear stress) with increasing particle concentration at the downstream of the stenosis, which depicts the vigorous flow circulation zone. These low shear stress regions prolong the residing time of the nanoparticles carrying drugs, which soaks up the LDL (Low-Density Lipoprotein) deposition. Moreover, an increase in NP concentration enhances the Nusselt number, which marks the increase of heat transfer from the arterial wall to the surrounding tissues to destroy tumor and cancer cells without affecting the healthy cells. The results have a significant influence on the study of medicine to treat arterial diseases such as atherosclerosis without the need for surgery, which can minimize the expenditures on cardiovascular treatments and post-surgical complications in patients. (C) 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.