The upper airway consists of complex mobile structures such as the tongue, soft palate and larynx that make predicting surgical outcomes in obstructive sleep apnea difficult. Dynamic computational fluid simulations provide a method to assess the causes of airway deformation, but require information on the airway shape and motion. Combining MR imaging from three sequences provides this information in high spatiotemporal resolution. Simulations allow characterization of airway wall motion as either in the same or opposite direction as the force applied by the intraluminal airflow, which can be used to better understand the subject-specific mechanics of sleep apnea.
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