Neurodegenerative preclinical models: Infrared pulse oximetry waveform wireless transmission in emotional contagion experiments
Team: Kaleb Branda, Joe Chen, Edgar Ulises Hernandez, Jin Tanizaki
Client: Claire Clelland, MD, PhD; Dept of Neurology, UCSF
Problem: Frontotemporal dementia patients have decreased heart rate changes to fear or anxiety, which reflects a well-known symptom of dementia: lack of empathy. Current mouse heart rate monitors are not useful as they require mice to be anesthetized, immobilized or tethered by cords. While development here focuses on pre-clinical models, an outstanding solution concept will be relevant to our human patients.
Need: Our unmet need is measurement of heart rate and movement of awake, behaving mice so we can test various interventions to restore cognition and empathy in our dementia mice prior to trying these treatments in human patients.
Redesigning MRI scanning facilities to enhance efficiency and reduce waste
Team: Ashna Jasuja, Karthik Ramesh, Sarah Spivack
Client: Elizabeth Pierce, MRI Technologist, MRI Laboratory, UCSF
Problem: Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) is an essential diagnostic tool in definitely diagnosing diseases, including multiple sclerosis. While routinely utilized in clinical settings, the MRI user environment is harsh. While perhaps surprising, we have an unmet need for non-magnetic storage and dispensing capabilities in the MRI clinic.
Need: devise a robust, safe way to store and dispense sterile patient linens in the MRI biohazard area, proximal to a magnet that is 60,000 times stronger than earth’s gravity.
Measuring limb mobility in critical care stroke patients to evaluate patient recovery
Team: Anshu Agarwal, Nicholas Hsu, Yasmine Ibrahim, Edwin Tang
Client: Arash Afshinnik, MD, Assistant Professor, Division of Neurology, UCSF School of Medicine, Fresno
Problem: For patients in critical care for brain injury treatment, physical therapy and diagnostic monitoring of limb motion and strength are important metrics of recovery. Presently, the intensive care until has no objective measurement of patient arm movement and strength. Each day on rounds, the attending physician will simply ask a patient to raise their arm, noting a subjective assessment of performance.
Need: Our unmet need centers on devising a means to provide a daily measure of how well a patient is lifting their arm, how fast the limb is lifted, and how much resistance the arm can overcome.
A method to control bleeding in physical trauma patients in low resource settings in order to minimize blood loss
Team: Arvind Gouttumukkala, Tanya Kumar, Emma Manzano, Matthew Sie
Client: Joe Forrester, MD; Department of Surgery and Trauma/Critical Care Fellow, Stanford University
Problem: Trauma is ubiquitous to the human experience. Regardless of nationality or socioeconomic status, a critically injured trauma patient is a person left without options, often dependent upon a surgeon for life-saving procedures and care. The experience of being cared for in a time of great vulnerability by another person of a different nationality, or utilizing a trauma system created in conjunction with another nation, can create firm cross-cultural bonds – a powerful diplomatic tool. In trauma treatment, whole blood is the ideal resuscitation project for injured patients. However, blood can be difficult to acquire, store, and administer, particularly in conflict zones.
Need: Our unmet need centers on devising a blood substitute that is storable, transportable, and administrable in low resource settings.
Creating an external device as a method to reduce repuncture rate in paracentesis
Team: Sahil Hansalia, Jessica Li, Keith Nishihara, Tinglin Wu
Client: Danielle Brandman, MD, UCSF School of Medicine, San Francisco
Problem: In patients with cirrhosis (severe liver disease), ascites fluid can accumulate in the abdomen. Ascites arises from pressure build up in the veins of the liver, causing reduced liver function. The pressure blocks blood flow in the liver, which over time keeps the kidneys from removing excess salt from the body. Fluid builds up. Paracentesis is a procedure performed to drain that fluid from the abdomen.
The procedure is relatively simple, but the design of the catheters used in some procedure kits is suboptimal. Excess flexibility leads to the catheter popping out of the peritoneal cavity and/or kinking. Stiffer catheters may perform better, but may present unacceptable bleeding risk.
Need: Our unmet need centers on devising an improved means to interface a catheter with the abdomen for more effective paracentesis.
Universal design: Geriatric patients with essential tremors and interfacing with touchscreen technology
Team: Dina Abedi, Hypatia Hou, Andre Mangulabnan
Client: Janice Schwartz, MD, Dept of Medicine, Elder Mobility, UCSF
Problem: Touchscreen technology is ubiquitous in work, leisure, communication, and in healthcare. Recent studies show that older adults find touch screens intuitive, respond positively to well-designed touchscreens, and adopt well-designed systems. With >2.8B touchscreen units sold (2016) and >30% of the US population 55+ years old, engaging with touchscreen technology is a growing need.
Need: Our unmet need centers on devising means to overcome physical challenges that older adults encounter in interfacing with technology, including overcoming physical challenges, vision and hearing problems, and small keys/screen buttons that are problematic owing to decreased sensitivity of fingers, tremors, & arthritis.
Enhancing MRI/X-Ray Guided Catheterization Procedures
Team: Alicia Auduong, Shaurya Dhingra, Andrew Hu, Roshan Toopal
Client: Steven Hetts, MD, Associate Professor in Residence of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, UCSF
Problem: In clinical medicine, endovascular therapy—the treatment of cardiovascular disease from inside the blood vessel—has changed the way heart attacks, stroke, and other cardiovascular conditions are being treated. Catheterization even aids targeted delivery of chemotherapeutics. Such delivery reduces patient side effects and improves treatment efficacy. The chemofiltration devices can also extract chemotherapeutics from the bloodstream, preventing toxic drugs from leaving the tumor site. While promising, accurately seating the catheter in the endovascular system is a non-trivial and error prone procedure.
Need: Our unmet need centers on devising a means to make endovascular catheters visible for both MRI and X-ray guided interventions, in an effort to improve safety outcomes.