Seminar on blood flow simulations

LOCATION: Function space, UCL AI Centre, 90 High Holborn, London WC1V 6BH

TIME: 14:00-15:00, 10/03/2026

SPEAKER: Miguel Fernandez (Inria)

TITLE: Modeling and simulation of cardiac hemodynamics

ABSTRACT: The numerical simulation of cardiac hemodynamics—that is, blood flow within the heart chambers—offers exciting opportunities for improved device design, treatment planning, and clinical decision-making. In particular, computational models provide direct access to mechanical quantities, such as local pressures and wall shear stresses, which are difficult to measure non-invasively in vivo. However, the inherently multiphysics nature of cardiac function—coupling fluid dynamics, structural mechanics, electrophysiology, and valve dynamics—poses significant challenges for computational modeling and scientific computing. In many practical settings, reduced or simplified modeling strategies can be employed, depending on the dominant physical mechanisms underlying the phenomenon of interest. In this talk, we review several modeling approaches for cardiac hemodynamics and show that model simplification may entail a number of shortcomings (e.g., spurious pressure oscillations, missing flow phases, etc.). We also demonstrate how efficient numerical methods can be leveraged to address these issues. The benefits and limitations of the different approaches are illustrated through representative numerical examples.