Modeling the effects of external oscillations on mucus clearance in obstructed airways

In this study, the effectiveness of this treatment method was investigated numerically using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) on the generated mucus-obstructed bronchial geometry. The conducted analyses compared the effects of vibrations acting in the axial, radial, and tangential directions on the clearance of mucus, which exhibits non-Newtonian flow behavior with shear-thinning properties. Simultaneously, the effects of changes in vibration amplitude and frequency, pressure differentials, fluid properties, and ciliary movements on the flow were separately examined and interpreted. The findings demonstrate that ciliary movements are insufficient in mucus-accumulated airways, applied vibrations enhance mucus clearance, and potential improvements in flow are quite sensitive to boundary conditions.PMID:37861917 | DOI:10.1007/s10237-023-01778-3
Source: Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology - Category: Biomedical Science Authors: Source Type: research