Finite element analysis of transcatheter aortic valve implantation: Insights on the modelling of self-expandable devices

Computational simulations of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (TAVI) have reached a high level of complexity and accuracy for the prediction of possible implantation scenarios during the decision-making process. However, when focusing on the prosthetic device, currently different devices are available on the market which not only have different geometries, but also different material properties. The present work focuses on the calibration of Nitinol constitutive parameters of four self-expandable devices starting from experimental radial force tests on the prosthetic samples. Beside providing optimal material properties for each specific device, we also perform a patient-specific simulation, comparing the results obtained using both “literature” and calibrated parameters with the aim of investigating the impact of metallic frame parameters choice on simulation results.