Investigation of the mechanical behaviour of the porcine aorta under uniaxial tensile loading regime

Bolesti srca i krvnih žila su među vodećim medicinskim problemima suvremenog svijeta i među glavnim uzročnicima smrtnosti u razvijenim zemljama. Proučavanje krvnih žila uvelike može doprinijeti razumijevanju nastanka, prevencije i liječenja kardiovaskularnih bolesti. Mehanička ispitivanja provode se s ciljem utvrđivanja svojstava materijala krvnih žila, a u tu svrhu najčešće se koriste modeli svinjskih žila zbog anatomskih i hemodinamičkih sličnosti s ljudskim žilama. U ovom je radu provedeno ispitivanje mehaničkog ponašanja svinjskih aorti pri jednoosnom statičkom vlačnom opterećenju. Uzorci su pripremljeni od svježih svinjskih torakalnih i abdominalnih aorti. Dio uzoraka je prije statičkog vlačnog opterećenja bio podvrgnut predkondicioniranju. Rezultati ispitivanja su pokazali da ne postoji statistički značajna razlika između uzoraka dobivenih iz torakalne i uzoraka dobivenih iz abdominalne aorte. Statistička analiza pokazuje kako postoji značajna razlika u vrijednosti modula elastičnosti između uzoraka koji su podvrgnuti predkondicioniranju i onih koji nisu, odnosno kod uzoraka s predkondicioniranjem manje je rasipanje rezultata. Predkondicioniranje uzoraka nema utjecaja na rezultate vlačne čvrstoće.Heart diseases are among the main medical problems of the modern world and they are among the main causes of mortality in developed countries. The study of blood vessels can greatly contribute to the understanding of the occurrence, prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Mechanical investigations are conducted to determine the material properties of blood vessels. The model of porcine aorta is commonly used in mechanical investigations because of the anatomical and hemodynamic similarities to humans. In this study, an investigation into the mechanical behavior of the porcine aorta under the uniaxial tensile loading regime has been carried out. Samples were prepared from fresh porcine thoracic and abdominal aortas. One part of the samples was subjected to preconditioning before the uniaxial tensile loading. The results of investigation show that there is no statistically significant difference between the samples obtained from the thoracic aorta and the samples obtained from the abdominal aorta. The statistical analysis shows that there is a significant difference in the value of the modulus of elasticity between the samples subjected and those which were not subjected to preconditioning. The samples subjected to preconditioning show low dispersion of the results. In addition, the preconditioning of the samples has no effect on the results of the tensile strength