Team: Erika Cruz, Joshua Deng, Vincent Kwan, Hannah Tang

Client: Sunghoon Kim, MD, Division of Pediatric Surgery, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital, Oakland

Problem: Access to veins and arteries is a central part of medicine, including for placing an intravenous tube (IV). While several ‘vein finder’ tools are available for superficial (near skin) veins, deep veins and arteries are hard to find, especially in pediatric patients.  There is a need for a more robust system to find the right vein for peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC).

Outcome:  Students devised a clinical device for real-time, accurate identification of deep veins and arteries that is suitable for use in pediatric PICC placement.