Lipid core plaques are the major cause of the vascular stenosis and heart attacks. Accumulation of Low-Density Lipoproteins (LDLs) across the atherosclerotic lesions, leads to the hardening of the arterial wall and causes cross sectional narrowing of the artery. Among different arterial wall models, Multilayer model gives accurate LDL concentration across the layers. In this study LDL accumulation in the four-layer carotid artery is investigated numerically. Navier-Stokes equations along with Darcy’s model for the porous regions and the convection-diffusion mass transport equation are employed. Blood considered as a Newtonian fluid and the artery’s wall is assumed to be a porous rigid medium. Due to the negligible pulsatile effect of the flow on the LDL concentration, equations are solved in the steady state condition. In this paper LDL concentration across the layers is considered under normal blood pressure to examine effects of the LDL’s size and the hypertension on the LDL accumulation. Furthermore, a comparison between normal endothelium and the leaky junction is performed. Results indicate that the normal endothelium plays a crucial role in prevention LDL accumulation in the arterial wall.

Keywords: Mass transport, Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL), Arterial wall

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