TITLE:
Euler, Father of Hemodynamics
AUTHORS:
Sylvio R. Bistafa
KEYWORDS:
Hemodynamics, Arterial Wave Mechanics, Cardiovascular Mechanics, Modeling the Features of the Arterial Network, Application of the Method of Characteristics
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Historical Studies,
Vol.7 No.2,
June
28,
2018
ABSTRACT: In 1742, Euler presented an essay on the “Principles
for determining the motion of the blood through arteries”. This is the first
known work on the mechanics of flows in elastic tubes, in which Euler applied
his equations to analyze the flow of blood through arteries, driven by a piston
pump simulating the heart. However, Euler did not recognize the wave nature of
his equations, which led him to a dead end on trying to find a closed form
solution. Nonetheless, it will be shown that the hemodynamic equations
developed by Euler about 275 years ago, still undergird the most advanced
numerical methods in use today for blood flow analysis in arterial networks.
Therefore, Euler’s pioneering and seminal work in the area of blood flow
justifies he be called the father of hemodynamics.