Elucidating the turbulence nature of the intracardiac flow: from medical images to multi-cycle Large Eddy Simulations

Abstract: This brief article accompanies a fluid dynamics video presenting the results of a large-eddy simulation of the flow in a realistic left heart. The left heart geometry, from the pulmonary veins to the aortic root, is extracted from medical images and the endocardium movements are reconstructed through image registration. Large-eddy simulations are thus performed in a patient-specific heart model, where the patient-specific movements of the geometry are prescribed. The flow obtained is intermittent, showing both in the left atrium and in the left ventricle turbulent spots correlated to flow decelerations.