Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2-2026

Publication Title

Advanced Engineering Materials

Abstract

Coronary stent implantation is an invasive procedure performed to correct atherosclerosis. The aftermath of this procedure is identified with neointimal hyperplasia, which contributes to in-stent restenosis (ISR), and thus remains a significant clinical challenge. This study introduces a novel, noninvasive conceptual approach for addressing ISR through the thermal activation of shape memory alloy (SMA) stent using focused ultrasound (FU) in a controlled manner to restore luminal patency. COMSOL Multiphysics and ABAQUS finite element software were employed to perform the numerical modeling to simulate the thermal and mechanical responses of the SMA stent integrated into the arterial wall. After 15 s of insonation, the temperature within the tissue layers rises from 37 degrees C to 42.63 degrees C. Surface temperature rise plot confirms that heat is directed at the target region (focal zone) with minimal heating effect to the surrounding tissues. Minor increases in stress development in both the stent and artery observed were within acceptable limits, which indicates mechanical integrity and a low chance of increasing mechanical damage via stretching to the tissue. This development offers a viable alternative to reintervention, providing precise, patient-specific, and ultrasonically guided therapy for ISR.

Comments

This work was supported by the NASA (80NSSC24K1064).

DOI

10.1002/adem.202502037

Version

Publisher's PDF

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License

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