Healthworks! flow loop

Project background: The MSCBL has partnered with HealthWorks! Kids’ Museum to educate children on the engineering, scientific and clinical aspects of the cardiovascular system in the context of an interactive activity on the human circulation. Over the past two years, undergraduate students in the MSCBL have designed and fabricated an interactive and simplified representation of the human circulation enabling flow visualization through the different components.

Project objectives: The next step in the project is to complement the exhibit with an educational module focused on the engineering description of the cardiovascular system and its disorders. The educational module will be displayed next to the flow loop and will consist of four sections describing: 1) the human circulation; 2) common cardiovascular diseases; 3) associated risk factors; and 4) prevention. Each section will consist of a brief narrative and illustrations, while sections 1 and 2 will also involve the manipulation of the flow loop and the fluid mechanical description of the observed effects.

Preliminary 3D reconstruction of the aortic valve using micro-CT imaging

Project background: While computational models have successfully simulated the flow through the aortic valve, their implementations have been limited mostly to idealized valve geometries. Since the flow is strongly dependent on the valve geometry, it is important to implement computational on a valve geometry that replicates the most realistically the native valve anatomy.

Project objectives:The purpose of this study is to develop an anatomically realistic aortic valve model using micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) imaging.