Coronary arteries are located on the surface of the heart and supply oxygenated blood to the myocardium and other components of the heart. The two coronary arteries located above the aortic arch are the Left Coronary Artery (LCA) and Right Coronary Artery (RCA). The LCA branches into the Left Anterior Descending (LAD) and the Left Circumflex (LCx) while the RCA branches into the Right Marginal Artery (RMA) and Post Descending Artery (PDA). The coronary arteries are likened to a complex tube-like structure, and the motion of the heart cause changes in pressure, which allows proper blood circulation during the systolic and diastolic phases [1].
Since it is essential to understand the physiological and hemodynamical behavior of the heart and coronary arteries, numerous studies have been conducted at different artery locations in the heart. Most of the research has focused on the branches between the LAD and LCx, with little or no attention directed towards the take-off angle the LCA makes with the aortic root. Although it has been reported that certain take-off angles of left main (LM) can be considered anomalous, findings have documented that such take off angles can make the artery prone to atherosclerosis and sudanophilia diseases [2]. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) has in recent years been used to solve a wide variety of fluid flow challenges, and can be used for this study.
The goal of this study is to use CFD techniques to study the hemodynamics of the different take-off angles of the left coronary artery from the aortic root. This will help identify areas in the left coronary artery that could be prone to atherosclerosis buildup.
