Publications
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Digital twins will help to tailor healthcare more in the future
Researchers Lukas Dekker and Carlijn Buck of TU/e and Catharina Hospital are investigating how they can provide better-tailored care to heart patients through smart modeling, thanks to a digital twin of each patient.
Imagine you have a virtual copy of your own body. This digital twin, an accurate computer model, can help doctors better understand your health, personalize treatments, and intervene earlier to prevent more significant problems. What sounds like science fiction now is becoming more and more of a reality, and in the (distant) future, it could revolutionize healthcare.
Source: Catharina Ziekenhuis Eindhoven/Geert Piek
Two Published Conference Papers
Our group has published two conference papers!
The first paper elaborates on efficient use of isogeometric analysis (IGA) to model post-infarction left ventricular mechanics. The IGA method is compared to the traditional finite element analysis (FEA). Secondly, both the FEA- and IGA-model are used as input for an FEA-mechanics-driven electrophysiology model which is used for a ventricular tachycardia (VT)-inducibility study.
The second paper assesses the sensitivity of repolarization gradients to infarct borderzone properties. Post-infarct VT is often caused by a re-entrant circuit located in the infarct border zone (BZ). The main changes in the BZ are in action potential duration (APD) and conduction velocity (CD), which introduce high repolarization time gradients (RTGs) and can lead to re-entry. In this study a sensitivity analysis is conducted in which the changes in APD and CV in a BZ, using the detailed biophysical Ten Tusscher model and the phenomenological modified Mitchel-Schaeffer ionic model.
Published Chapter
Together with four other researchers, Evianne Kruithof published a chapter on electromechanical in silico testing of drug-induced risk to develop Torsade de Pointes. Torsade de Pointes (TdP) is a type of ventricular tachycardia that can occur as a side effect of several medications. A novel testing paradigm was used that utilizes single cell electromechanical simulations to predict TdP risk for drugs that could potentially be used clinically.
Conference e/MTIC
The e/MTIC conference: Fast track to clinical innovation – the essentials, was one where we were able to present our work to a broad public interested in MedTech. Furthermore, Carlijn got the opportunity to pitch COMBAT-VT and her PhD and ended second!
Published Review
Our first paper is published in the Journal of Royal Society Interface! It is a review about the medical, engineering and data science approach to tackle the prediction of Ventricular Tachycardia. The review gives an outlook on how we can combine all three approaches in a Digital Twin concept!
Cardio Poster & Pitch event e/MTIC
In the end of March we had the opportunity to share our research with our e/MTIC network during the Cardio Poster & Pitch event at the Philips Design Center. Robin gave an informational pitch about IGA modeling and he, Evianne and Carlijn presented their research posters, which can be found here:
Can data predict who develops arrhythmias after having a myocardial infarction?
Which heart patients develop arrhythmias in the years after their infarction? Researchers at the Catharina Hart- en Vaatcentrum (cardiovascular center) and TU Eindhoven are trying to find an answer to this question with the help of artificial intelligence (AI). There is still a lot of uncertainty about arrhythmias after having a myocardial infarction, which can be life-threatening.
