Hemodynamics and Fluid-Structure-Interaction in a Virtual Heart

Modeling the function of the human heart is of growing importance in a time when surgical treatment becomes the predominant therapy option. The hemodynamics of ventricular and vascular flow is closely linked to other disciplines like structural mechanics of myocardial and vascular tissue, electro-dynamical excitation, etc. A multi-disciplinary approach is therefore needed to describe it. While a monolithic solution of the underlying differential equations in one set is thinkable, a partitioned approach can take into account the specifics of the single disciplines and profit from specialized models and algorithms. We show how by coupling specialized solvers for fluid and solid mechanics a coupled model of ventricular flow can be created that gives insight into the hemodynamics in a way that is more than the sum of its parts.