An Integrated Open-Source Software System for the Generation and Analysis of Subject-Specific Blood Flow Simulation Ensembles

Hemodynamic analysis of blood flow is critical for diagnosing cardiovascular diseases and investigating cardiovascular parameters, such as aneurysms and wall shear stress. For subject-specific analyses, the anatomy and blood flow of the subject can be captured non-invasively using structural and 4D Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), respectively. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD), on the other hand, can be used to generate blood flow simulations. To generate and analyze subject-specific blood flow simulations, MRI and CFD have to be brought together. We present an interactive, customizable, and user-oriented visual analysis tool that integrates measured data and CFD simulations. Thus, our open-source tool supports both medical and numerical analysis workflows. It enables the creation of simulation ensembles with a high variety of parameters. Furthermore, it allows for visual and analytical examination of simulations and measurements through 2D embeddings. To demonstrate the effectiveness of our tool, we applied it to three real-world use cases, showcasing its ability to configure simulation ensembles and analyze blood flow. We evaluated our example cases together with MRI and CFD experts. By combining the strengths of both CFD and MRI, our tool provides a comprehensive understanding of hemodynamic parameters, facilitating accurate analysis of hemodynamic biomarkers.