Modelling the Role of the Bast’s Valve in Meniere’s Disease

Overview

Within the inner ear, the utriculo-endolymphatic valve (Bast’s valve) is an anatomic separation between vestibular chambers that was discovered almost 100 years ago. Despite being well-described anatomically, there has been little research on the effects of pressure changes across this valve. Understanding the normal conditions for the valve’s patency and closure are important to understanding inner ear disorders like Meniere’s disease.

Objectives

Our team’s long-term objectives involve the use of physical, computational, and mathematical modelling to examine the pressure gradient surrounding Bast’s Valve to understand the conditions in which it opens or closes. Due to the wide scope of these objectives with little published data to work from, the objectives specific to this semester concentrated on computational modelling and introductory mathematics.

Approach

– Initial research efforts were conducted by all group members to determine dimensions, material properties, geometrical shapes, as well as understand any existing knowledge on the pathology of Meniere’s Disease that could be pertinent to our efforts
– Fluid mechanic topics such as utilizing Navier Stokes, determining flow regime, etc. were studied by several group members in order to propose an introductory mathematical model
– Due to the extreme variability found in our research for model constants like Young’s Modulus, Poisson’s Ratio, etc., a MATLAB code was used to formally record the equations we used in order to easily change constant values when future research is conducted
– COMSOL models with varying complexities and differing geometries were developed to examine the region of the Bast’s Valve
– Weekly sponsor meetings were conducted to receive crucial feedback on project progress
– Collaborated with COMSOL experts, inner ear researchers, fluid mechanics specialists, anatomical printing personnel, etc. gather outside perspectives and aid in the modelling processes

Outcomes

– A large subset of publications was gathered and organized to assist future groups
– A 3D printed anatomical model was created to demonstrate the capabilities of printing complex models for future physical prototyping efforts
– A novel hypothesis was proposed to describe how the valve functions in a diseased state
– Our COMSOL models paired with our thorough research allowed us to conclude that the Bast valve is indeed controlled by pressure

https://youtu.be/Cs7e4qW7ZNY