Bioheat transfer in the human eye : a boundary element approach

A boundary element method is applied for the numerical solution of a boundary value problem for a two-dimensional steady-state bioheat transfer model of the human eye. The human eye is modeled as comprising four distinct homogeneous regions. The boundary condition on the outer surface of the cornea is non-linear due to heat radiation. An iterative approach is used to treat the non-linear heat radiation term. The center corneal temperature is computed numerically and compared with values reported in the literature. It appears that the boundary element method calculates the normal heat flux more accurately than the finite element method on the corneal surface, especially near its edges. * Author for correspondence (W. T. Ang) E-mail: mwtang@ntu.edu.sg http://www.ntu.edu.sg/home/mwtang/ Accepted for publication in Engineering Analysis with Boundary Elements (status as on 3 October 2006). When the article is in press online, more details may be obtained by clicking: http://doi.dx.org/10.1016/j.enganabound.2006.09.011

[1]  P B Morgan,et al.  Potential Applications of Ocular Thermography , 1993, Optometry and vision science : official publication of the American Academy of Optometry.

[2]  R Mapstone,et al.  Measurement of corneal temperature. , 1968, Experimental eye research.

[3]  T. Okuno.  Thermal effect of infra-red radiation on the eye: a study based on a model. , 1991, The Annals of occupational hygiene.

[4]  N A Brennan,et al.  Ocular surface temperature. , 1989, Current eye research.

[5]  James C. Lin,et al.  Effect of 2450-Mhz Radiation on the Rabbit Eye , 1975 .

[6]  J Sarvaranta,et al.  Thermography of the eye during cold stress. , 1974, Acta ophthalmologica. Supplementum.

[7]  J. A. Scott,et al.  A finite element model of heat transport in the human eye. , 1988, Physics in medicine and biology.

[8]  D. Clements.  Boundary value problems governed by second order elliptic systems , 1978 .

[9]  J J Lagendijk,et al.  A mathematical model to calculate temperature distributions in human and rabbit eyes during hyperthermic treatment. , 1982, Physics in medicine and biology.

[10]  A. Hirata,et al.  Temperature rises in the human eye exposed to EM waves in the frequency range 0.6-6 GHz , 2000 .

[11]  Boundary Element Methods for Biological Systems , 2003 .

[12]  E. Amara,et al.  Numerical investigations on thermal effects of laser-ocular media interaction , 1995 .

[13]  Whye-Teong Ang.  A time-stepping dual-reciprocity boundary element method for anisotropic heat diffusion subject to specification of energy , 2005, Appl. Math. Comput..

[14]  A. Tomlinson,et al.  The role of tear physiology in ocular surface temperature , 2000, Eye.

[15]  Wen-Qiang Lu,et al.  Simulation of the thermal wave propagation in biological tissues by the dual reciprocity boundary element method , 1998 .

[16]  S. Mukherjee,et al.  Boundary element techniques: Theory and applications in engineering , 1984 .

[17]  A. Hirata,et al.  Temperature increase in human eyes due to near-field and far-field exposures at 900 MHz, 1.5 GHz, and 1.9 GHz , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility.

[18]  E. Y. K. Ng,et al.  FEM simulation of the eye structure with bioheat analysis , 2006, Comput. Methods Programs Biomed..

[19]  Umit Cicekli,et al.  Computational model for heat transfer in the human eye using the finite element method , 2003 .

[20]  James C. Lin,et al.  Microwave Induced Temperature Rises in Rabbit Eyes in Cataract Research , 1975 .

[21]  The boundary element electromagnetic–thermal analysis of human exposure to base station antennas radiation , 2004 .

[22]  A R Fielder,et al.  Problems with corneal arcus. , 1981, Transactions of the ophthalmological societies of the United Kingdom.