About this Research Topic

Background

Nearly thirty years following the publication of the seminal article "Forward and backward running waves in the arteries: analysis using the method of characteristics" by KH Parker and CJ Jones (1990), the study of wave travel in the circulation remains a vibrant and important area of cardiovascular research. When blood ejection occurs during myocardial contract, a pulse wave is generated and this will travel through the circulation. The measurement, analysis and modeling of these waves and their reflection can provide invaluable insight into several pathophysiological scenarios – from changes in arterial stiffness to changes imposed by surgery necessary to correct congenital heart defects.

This Research Topic aims to explore the most recent developments in the field of wave analysis, from non-invasive imaging-based applications to the identification of potential wave 'biomarkers' that could have clinical relevance, encompassing a broad range of clinical scenarios, from heart failure to pregnancy physiology to adult and pediatric congenital heart disease. Indeed, the Research Topic will put an accent on the clinical implications of the analysis of wave dynamics and those areas in which the analytical methods could provide novel insights into different forms of cardiovascular disease. The study of wave reflections, different formulations of the analysis, challenges in clinical measurements (and thus clinical applicability) as well as the clinical significance of new wave-derived indices will all be explored in the context of this Research Topic. Eminent experts in the field will be invited to contribute Reviews and opinion pieces to highlight the development of the analytical techniques and the most relevant future directions, whilst new Original Research contributions will be sought to present a breadth of applications of wave analysis in cardiovascular physiology and disease.

The Research Topic is aimed to straddle across Frontiers in Pediatric Cardiology, Frontiers in Cardiovascular Imaging and Frontiers in Vascular Physiology, considering the multifaceted nature of the topic being discussed and the multiple angles that can be discussed, from methodological developments to clinical applications. As such, contributors will be invited to cover different areas of cardiovascular physiology and disease, including (but not limited to):
• Mathematical modeling of the circulation
• Wave travel in different congenital heart disease scenarios
• Coronary wave intensity analysis
• Wave dynamics in pulmonary hypertension
• Aortic counterpulsation
• Changes in wave travel during pregnancy (including complex physiologies e.g. Fontan)
• Changes in wave travel in hypertensive patients
• Wave reflections in the common and internal carotid arteries
• Wave intensity in small animal models

Keywords: wave intensity analysis, hemodynamics, congenital heart disease, heart failure, vascular physiology

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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