Characterization of an Isolated Kidney’s Vasculature for Use in Bio‐Thermal Modeling

Accurate bio‐thermal modeling requires site‐specific modeling of discrete vascular anatomy. Presented herewith are several steps that have been developed to describe the vessel network of isolated canine and bovine kidneys. These perfused, isolated kidneys provide an environment to repeatedly test and improve acquisition methods to visualize the vascular anatomy, as well as providing a method to experimentally validate discrete vasculature thermal models. The organs are preserved using a previously developed methodology that keeps the vasculature intact, allowing for the organ to be perfused. It also allows for the repeated fixation and re‐hydration of the same organ, permitting the comparison of various methods and models. The organ extraction, alcohol preservation, and perfusion of the organ are described. The vessel locations were obtained through a high‐resolution time‐of‐flight (TOF) magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) technique. Sequential improvements of both the experimental setup used for this a...