In vivo mechanical characterization of human liver

Abstract The mechanical behavior of human liver has been characterized with aspiration experiments. Measurements have been performed in vivo under sterile conditions during open surgery. Twenty-three measurements on six healthy human livers were performed using the same loading history for each test, so to allow a direct comparison of the measured deformations. The measurement results are reported and the experimental uncertainties evaluated. One of the main objectives of the present paper is to share information on the in vivo mechanical response of human liver with the biomechanics research community: the present data can be used for mechanical model development and validation purposes. The parameters of a quasi-linear viscoelastic model have been determined from the experimental data by means of inverse finite element calculations. The corresponding linear elastic modulus is compared with values from the literature. In particular, a significant discrepancy has been found with respect to the values proposed by Carter et al. [Carter, F.J., Frank, T.G., Davies, P.J., McLean, D., Cuschieri, A., 2001. Measurement and modelling of the compliance of human and porcine organs. Medical Image Analysis 5, 231–236] and the reasons for this difference are discussed. The predictive capabilities of the quasi-linear viscoelastic model and the Rubin Bodner non-linear elastic–viscoplastic model are compared with respect to the tissue response in repeated aspiration cycles. Finally, for demonstration purposes, the constitutive model corresponding to the “average” liver response has been implemented into a finite element whole liver model and used for simulations related to liver surgery.