ECoMMFiT - Biomedical Applications
Biological flows are of great interest since they are related with important health diseases. Knowing the behavior of the fluids in human body and the effect that the environment has in its comportment could help in clinical diagnostics and treatment.
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) expertise of the ECoMMFiT can be applied to help in this task. For example, CFD predictions of the flow in cerebral aneurysms can help to analyze the mechanisms of growth and rupture and the degree of stress for a given flow conditions and to compare and to propose different stenting treatments. Tailored experimental and computational techniques have also been used to predict and analyze processes such as the platelet deposition on vascular walls, the growth of plaque deposits and the flow in aneurysms. The information that can be extracted is of relevance because it can be associated with clinical parameters, which in turn can be used to establish or improve patient-specific treatments.
Another area of biomedical interest is the development of software for analyzing specific images. ECoMMFit has developed the software ArtWAS, which allows a semiautomatic measurement of the intima-media thickness (IMT) from ultrasound images of the carotid artery. IMT has revealed as a surrogate marker of cardiovascular events in several clinical trials. Further, the measurement of IMT is advised in males over 45 years of age, in order to better stratify the cardiovascular risk. The results obtained in the validation process of the software shows that it is highly reliable for the measurement of carotid IMT, especially in the common carotid artery, but also in the bulb and internal. Further, it allows the performance of a significant higher number of measurements in each arterial segment, in a reduced amount of time.
Several research groups have collaborations with ECOMMFIT in this field, i.e.
the Cardiovascular Research Center in Barcelona, the Servei de Cirurgia
Vascular of the Hospital Joan XXIII (Tarragona),
Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute, and others.
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Team
- Jordi Pallarès
- Anton Vernet
- Salvatore Cito
- Josep Anton Ferré
- Sylvana V. Varela