Impact of Systemic Arterial Pressure, Collateral Vascular Resistance and Degree of Carotid Stenosis on Cerebral Blood Flow, Reserve Blood Flow, Critical Carotid Stenosis, Cerebral Ischemia and Carotid Hemodynamics

Abstract Introduction Carotid artery stenosis related stroke is a major health care concern. Current risk management strategies for patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis include ultrasound surveillance and occasionally an estimate of cerebral blood flow reserve. Other patient specific hemodynamic variables may be predictive of ischemic stroke risk. This study, based on a cerebral blood flow hemodynamic model, aims to investigate the impact of systemic arterial pressure, collateral vascular resistance and degree of carotid stenosis on cerebral ischemic risk, cerebrovascular blood flow reserve, critical carotid artery stenosis, carotid artery blood flow and carotid stenosis hemodynamics. Methods This study uses a three-component (carotid, collateral, brain) energy conservation cerebrovascular fluid mechanics model in combination with the Lassen cerebral blood flow autoregulation model that predicts cerebral blood flow in patients with carotid stenosis. It is a two-phase model, zone A when regional cerebral blood flow is autoregulated at normal values and zone B when cerebral blood flow is below normal and dependent on collateral perfusion pressure. The model solution with carotid artery occlusion defines collateral vascular resistance, with patient specific values calculated from clinical pressure measurements. In addition to cerebral blood flow the model predicts critical stenosis values and carotid and collateral blood flows as a function of systemic arterial pressure and percent diameter stenosis. Carotid stenosis blood flow velocities and energy dissipation are predicted from carotid blood flow solutions. Results The model defines patient specific collateral vascular resistance, cerebral vascular resistance and critical carotid stenosis. It predicts carotid vascular resistance to be non-linearly proportional to area carotid stenosis. Solutions include reserve cerebral blood flow, the carotid and collateral components of cerebral blood flow, criteria for cerebral ischemia and carotid stenosis hemodynamics. Critical carotid stenosis is determined by mean systemic arterial pressure and the Lassen autoregulation threshold cerebral perfusion pressure. Critical stenosis values range from 61% to 76% diameter stenosis when mean systemic arterial pressures are 80mmHg to 120mmHg and the cerebral autoregulation pressure threshold is 50mmHg. When carotid stenosis is less than critical, cerebral blood flow is maintained normal and the ratios of carotid blood flow to collateral blood flow are inversely proportional to the carotid to collateral vascular resistance ratios. At stenosis greater than the critical, carotid blood flow is not adequate to maintain normal cerebral blood flow, cerebral blood flow is primarily collateral flow, all reserve blood flow is collateral and prevention of cerebral ischemia requires adequate collateral flow. Patient specific collateral vascular resistance values less than 1.0 predict normal cerebral blood flow at moderate to severe stenosis. Values greater than 1.0 predicts cerebral ischemia to be dependent on the magnitude of collateral vascular resistance. Systemic arterial pressure is a major determinant of carotid stenosis hemodynamics. Carotid blood flow velocities increase with carotid stenosis and have progressively higher variance depending on collateral blood flow as predicted by collateral vascular resistance. Turbulent flow energy dissipation intensity is similarly inversely proportional to collateral vascular resistance at severe carotid stenosis. Conclusions Cerebral, collateral and carotid blood flow solutions are determined by systemic arterial pressure, collateral vascular resistance and degree of stenosis. Critical carotid stenosis, systemic arterial pressure and collateral vascular resistance are primary determinants of cerebral ischemic risk in patients with significant carotid stenosis.