Modeling human ventricular geometry and fiber orientation based on diffusion tensor MRI

Accurate numerical simulations of the electrical and mechanical activities of the heart require suitable anatomical models including muscle fiber orientation. In this work, a model based on diffusion tensor imaging delivering both geometrical information and fiber orientation was developed. The dataset was segmented into a variety of tissue classes including fiber orientation information in the two ventricles. A tool was generated allowing to extract the fiber orientation information at different parts of the ventricles. These data is compared to histological measurements. The extracted data show good agreement with the histological in the left ventricular free wall. A transmurally constant transversal angle of fiber as proposed by the histological data was not seen in the extracted data.