Effect of blood viscosity on the hemodynamics of arteriovenous fistulae based on numerical investigation

Ning Zhao, Tian Zhang, Tianyu Zhang, Baohui Wang, Weina Mu and Fan Wang

Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering, 2025, vol. 28, issue 11, 1721-1733

Abstract: Arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is the most commonly used vascular access for hemodialysis in patients with end-stage renal disease. Vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and thrombosis, triggered by altered hemodynamic conditions, are the main causes of access failure. Changes in blood viscosity accelerate access dysfunction by affecting local velocities and wall shear stress (WSS) distribution in the circulation. Numerical simulation was employed to analyze and compare the hemodynamic behavior of AVF under different blood viscosities (0.001–0.012 Pa∙s). An idealized three-dimensional model with end-to-side anastomosis was established. Transient simulations were conducted using pulsatile inlet velocity and outflow as boundary conditions. The simulation results reveal the blood flow state of AVF under different viscosity physiological conditions and derive the rule of change. When blood viscosity increases, the local velocity in the disturbed region slows down and the stagnation time becomes longer, resulting in increased deposition of substances. As blood viscosity increases, the level of shear stress on the entire wall of the fistula increases accordingly. WSS values at high viscosities above 0.007 Pa∙s showed significantly larger low-shear regions near the anastomosis and increased chances of inducing atheromatous plaques. This research has revealed the correlation between blood dynamic viscosity and the hemodynamic behavior of AVF. Elevated whole blood viscosity increases the incidence of access obstruction and vascular disease leading to fistula failure. The study provides a basis for optimizing the distribution of hemodynamic parameters in the fistula for hemodialysis patients.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/10255842.2024.2333926 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:gcmbxx:v:28:y:2025:i:11:p:1721-1733

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/gcmb20

DOI: 10.1080/10255842.2024.2333926

Access Statistics for this article

Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering is currently edited by Director of Biomaterials John Middleton

More articles in Computer Methods in Biomechanics and Biomedical Engineering from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().