Med. Eng. Phys. Vol. 18, No. 4, pp.

336-338,
1996
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ELSEVIER

Reply to Professor Burattinis

comments on
Exponentially
tapered t-tube model of systemic
arterial system in dogs
Kuo-Chu Chang

Department
of Phvsiolow.
College
Set. 1, Jen-Ai Rd, Taipec Taiwan
Received

Med.

8 March

Eng.

Phys.,

1995, accepted

1996,

Vol.

25 July

of Medicine,

National

Taiwan

University,

No. 1,

1995

18, 336-338, June

There is no argument
to say that the geometric
and elastic tapering of the arterial system is the
rule of nature and any assumption
to describe the
mechanical
and anatomical
properties
of blood
vessels in a uniform fashion deviates considerably
from the reality.
Diameter
tapering is evident as lumen radius
and wall thickness become
progressively
small
toward the peripheral.
The wall stiffness and
pulse wave velocity are increasing
with the distance from the heart. There are many reports suggesting that the reflection
phenomena
in the
arterial system are low-pass filteredz4.
This lowpass filtering
is presumed
to be due to the geometric and elastic differences,
such as tapering,
between the proximal
and distal portions of the
arterial tree. Both diameter
and elastic tapering
cause a smooth change of the arterial impedance
and will have a substantial impact on the magnitude and/or sequence of pulse wave reflection.
In studies of Wave travel in arteries and the
design of the cardiovascular
system, Taylor summarized the main effects of non-uniformity
of the
arterial system 5. These found that the efficiency of
the system will be enhanced if the system is made
progressively
less distensible
in its peripheral
extensions.
If the heart frequency
be suitably
chosen, such a non-uniform
distensibility
will
result in minimal
reflected components
from the
periphery
and a functional
isolation of the input
impedance,
thus both reducing cardiac work and
keeping
it relatively
constant
at different
frequencies. It was concluded
that the experimental
evidence is all in favour of the existence of such
suitable non-uniformity
in the mammalian
arterial
system. Consequently,
making use of a uniform
transmission
line to relate pulsatile pressure and
flow waveforms in the ascending aorta is indeed
improper.
Burattinis
contribution
on the uniform model is well recognized.
However, from a
scientific point of view, the important
thing is how

to advance the uniform

model to describe the
non-uniform
nature of the arterial system.
The main issue remained
to be unravelled
is
how to incorporate
the non-uniform
geometrical
and mechanical
properties
of the vasculature to
analyse the measured pulsatile aortic pressure and
flow signals. We start our approach by using an
exponentially
tapered
transmission
line
to
describe the non-uniformity
of the tube6. In the
process of our non-uniform
T-tube model formulation, each tsbe terminates
in a normalized
lo&d
impedance,
&. Burattini
et al. criticize
that &
must be a real and frequency independent
load
to result in our equation
(4). We disagree with
that comment
because the arterial impedance
is
complex
and frequency-dependent,
even at the
distal of the tube. In both formulation
of uniform
line and non-uniform
line, it is not necessary to
concrete that Z, has to be real resistor. Therefore,
r (0,) equals 0 if the arterial impedance
at the
distal of the tube equals the terminal
load at the
termination
of the tube.
In our report6, we a ologize for missing to mention the assumption
1F I<< 1, when the approximation
equation,
our equation
(2), is used to
resolve the problem.
Burattini
et al. question that
under the assumption
ll?<<
1 we still have a
result in relatively
big amplitude
of reflected
waves with respect to forward waves as displayed
in our Figure 4. In fact, the magnitude
of pulse
reflection
is 0.48 calculated by our non-uniform
T-tube model and this value is smaller than that,
0.55, estimated by the uniform T-tube model proposed by Burattini
et aZ.,s, when the same dog
data were analysed. Although
the shape of these
forward and reflected waves are similiar to those
calculated
by Burattini
et al. using their uniform
T-tube, the impedance
spectra at the inlet of each
tube are significantly

different

when the uniform

and non-uniform
T-tube models are adopted to
relate the same pulsatile aortic pressure and flow

fkpownl~a~~y

signals. It is obvious to notice that at high frequency portion the input impedance
at the inlet
of head circulation
is considerably
smaller than
that at the entrance of body circulation
when
their uniform
T-tube is used to analyse the data
(see Figure I). When our data are analysed with
the uniform T-tube model, the result is similiar to
that obtained
by Burattini
et aZ.,. However, this
is in contradiction
with the general finding that
the blood vessels in the head circulation,
brachiocephalic
and left subclavian arteries, are stiffer
and narrower than those in the body circulation,
descending
thoracic aorta and large arteries in
the abdomen.
The phase velocity is a function
of both pulsation, o, and position, z, along the paths (&~re
9.7 and Fi re 9.5 in the book of Milnor,
respectively) $-I. This is the characterstic
of the
arterial system no matter whether the arterial system is modelled
or not. Burattini
et al. argue that
the phase velocity in a uniform transmission
tube
is independent
of pulsation and the phase velocity
must be a function
of pulsation
in an exponentially tapered transmission
line. They conclude

tapred

t-tube

model

of systemic

arterial

syslrm

in dqp:

KuoChu

Chang

that our equation

(9) is incorrect
because the
dependence
of the phase velocity on o is not
taken into consideration.
We wonder very much
why there should be a discrepancy between these
two models. The general findings are the fact that
apparent phase velocity calculated
from Fourier
series of pressures in the ascending aorta of the
dog is frequencydependenP.
The dilemma
our
non-uniform
model
encounters
is also the
dilemma
that the uniform model has to face. We
take the assumption
that the phase velocity in an
exponentially
tapered transmission
line is independent
of o as in the uniform
tube. The
important
fact is that wave front velocity of the
pressure wave is in progressive
increase with
increasing distance from the heart. Our non-uniform T-tube mode takes into account that the
phase velocity is positiondependent.
The disadvantage of the uniform model is that the influence
of elastic tapering is not taken into consideration.
Therefore,
the uniform
T-tube model is insufficient to relate pulsatile pressure and flow signals
measured in the ascending aorta.
We acknowledge
that our non-uniform
T-tube
model has a drawback in our equation
(14). This
is the high frequency adaptation
between the tube
and the terminal
load. We assume that the normalizedarterial
impedance
at the distal of the
tube, &, equals the normalized
complex terminal
load, &. At the termination
of each tube, the following result holds as w - cc:

(1)
0

Frcqlrciay

(lb)

100

200

Frequency

300

400

(Hz)

Figure 1 The uniform

T-tube model proposed
by Burattini
et al.,*
is used to relate pulsatile aortic pressure and flow waveforms
that is
the same as the example
in Changs report.
In the upper panel, the
solid lines show the pressure and flow signals measured
in the ascencing aorta, and the predicted
pressure is represented
as a dashed line.
Model-estimated
forward
and backward
pressure components
at the
inlet of the head circulation
(dashed lines), body circulation
(dotted
lines). and in the ascending
aorta (solid lines) are shown in the
middle panel. In the lower panel, the input impedance
spectra of
the head circulation
(dashed lines), body circulation
(dotted lines),
and whole systemic vasculature
(solid lines) are shown. Circles are
data points obtained
from the ratio of the ascending
aortic pressure
harmonics
to the corresponding
flow harmonics

& is the arterial impedance

at the distal of the
tube, and 4 is the peripheral
vascular resistance.
&,, is the load resistor chosen to adapt the load
with the tube at high frequency. There is little
information
about the exact value in end-tube
characteristic
impedance
at very high frequencies.
However, we learn the fact that the apparent
phase velocity should be higher
at lower frequencies where reflections
prevail, and lower at
higher frequencies where reflections
are less significant.
According
to Lathams
report),
at
locations immediately
proximal
and distal to the
renal branches, the difference
between the two
corresponding
apparent
velocities
at high frequency is small while the difference
at low frequency is relatively large. So, we speculated that
at very high frequencies the characteristic
impedance at the distal of the tube approximates
the
characteristic
impedance
at the entrance of the
transmission
tube, Z,. This assumption
leads to
high frequency adaptation
between the tube and
the terminal
load that is expressed by our equation (14):
(2)

However, the exact connection

between ( Zd),=
remains to be determined.
and (&),x
In the process of parameter
estimation,
the
number
of six free model parameters
estimated
by our non-uniform
T-tube model is the same as

337

&$onatially

tapered t-tube model of

systaic arterial system in dogs: KueChu

1 System parameters estimated by making use of the uniform

T-tube model. Proposed by Burattini er al.

Table

(N= 10)
Mean 251 9.75 0.0528
+SD f41 24.82 f0.0269

0.0634
344 22.42 0.0888
0.1549
f0.0166 f78 f7.31 f0.0323 f0.0879

Subscript
h = head
circulation;
b = body
circulation.
Z, = characteristic inpedance at the inlet of the tube (dyne s cmm5);
r = tube-end transmission time
(ms);
(I&= tube
compliance
(ml mmHg-); Cr= load compliance (ml mmHg-).

the number of free parameters estimated by Burattini

et al. in their
uniform
T-tube
model.
Although
we do not introduce
any more parameters, it cannot be judged, based on this point,
that the use of the exponentially
tapered transmission line theory for the description
of the vasculature is incorrect. Now, I would raise a question: What kind of model is a good, useful, and
correct model for the description
of the arterial
system? Indeed,
modelling
is very much an art.
Mathematical
models, however, are limited in having a finite number of variables and a finite arithmetical precision.
A really good, useful, and
correct
model should identify regularities
in a
system and then create a mathematic
process that
could emulate, to a limited degree, the behaviour
of the actual system. It not only has a goodness of
model-fit,
but also has the model-generated
parameters capable of representing
and interpreting
the biological
system. Table I lists some model-estimated
parameters
when the uniform
T-tube
model proposed by Burattini
et al. is used to analyse our experimental
data. The results are in contrast to the general expectations
because Z, is
27% larger than Zh, where h and b represent the
head and body circulation
respectively. These are
close to the reports by Burattini
et aZ.s. On the
other hand, our non-uniform
T-tube model gives
the estimate of Z., that is, on the average, 88.25%
of the estimate of Z,,. This is in agreement
with
the findings of Cox and Pace who found that &,
was 12% less than Zh. Since the non-uniform
Ttube model has spatial tapering of the tube for
which the phase constant is a function of the path
length, the calculation
of tube compliance
from
the knowledge of characteristic
impedance
at the
inlet of the tube, 2, and tube-end transmission
time, T, seems to be meaningless.
However, for the
uniform
T-tube model, tube compliance
can be
calculated
by having model-estimated
Z, and T:
C, = T/Z,~. Surprisingly,
the calculated tube compliance is significantly
smaller than the estimated
load compliance
in each tube (see Table I). The
results are similar to those obtained by Burattini
et

338

Chang

aPp8**. These are in contradiction

with the general
expectations
that there is more compliance
in
proximal
than distal arteries. All unexpected
results mentioned
above originate
from the use
of the uniformtransmissionline to represent the
arterial system when non-uniformity
is the rule of
nature in this system.
The unexpected
results obtained
by the uniform T-tube model proposed by Burattini
et al.
prompt
as to conclude
that the uniform
T-tube
model is incorrect to relate pulsatile pressure and
flow waveforms measured in the ascending aorta. On
the other hand, our non-uniform
T-tube model
gives reasonable
estimates in representing
and
interpreting
the mechanical
properties of the vasculature. The important
aspect of the exponentially tapered transmission line theory is that it can
reflect the behaviour of the arterial diameter and
elastic tapering.
However, our non-uniform
Ttube model still has a drawback as mentioned
earlier. More studies are needed to resolve the problem, in the formulation
of the arterial non-uniformity, to construct a model in more reality.
REFERENCES
1. McDonald
DA. Blood flow in Arteries. London: Arnold,
1974.
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WR. Hemodynamics.
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