Physiological vortices in the sinuses of Valsalva: An in vitro approach for bio-prosthetic valves

The physiological flow dynamics within the Valsalva sinuses, in terms of global and local parameters, are still not fully understood. This study attempts to identify the physiological conditions as closely as possible, and to give an explanation of the different and sometime contradictory results in literature. ... 2. Material and Methods. In this study, all experiments were carried out using a hydro-mechanical pulse duplicator (Vivitro Superpump System SP3891, ViVitro Labs Inc., Canada), with pressure catheters monitoring the pressure upstream and downstream of the aortic valve. ...