MS Thesis Presentation by Conor Flannery
Friday, April 8, 2005

(Dr. David Ku , Chair)

"Thrombus Formation under High Shear in Arterial Stenotic Flow"

Abstract

Acute thrombotic and thromboembolic occlusion of atherosclerotic vessels are events that precipitate most heart attacks and strokes. In arterial stenotic flow, thrombus formation is shear dependent and may or may not lead to complete occlusion of the vessel. Platelets in whole blood adhere to collagen-coated surfaces and as they accumulate the resistance of the stenosis increases because of the decreasing passageway of the occluded stenosis. As a model of blood clotting in stenoses, porcine blood is heparinized and perfused over tubular glass test sections that are coated with collagen type I. Each test section has a preexisting stenosis and its severity varies so that higher percent stenoses produce higher shear rates on the blood. The hypothesis of this thesis is that high shear rates due to stenosis in arteries are a necessary feature for occlusive thrombosis.