Principal Investigators
Honors & News
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October 10, 2012
University Launches Center for Developing Medical Devices and Other Medical Innovations
The University of Rochester is combining its medical, engineering, and entrepreneurial expertise to create the Center for Medical Technology Innovation (CMTI). A collaboration of the Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the School of Medicine and Dentistry, CMTI will also make use of the University's Center for Entrepreneurship as it coordinates activities to develop technological solutions to clinical problems.
Ankur Chandra, M.D., the medical director of CMTI, said a recent development at the University of Rochester Medical Center validates the importance of the center's approach. Since multiple medical conditions such as aortic aneurysms can now be addressed by inserting devices through blood vessels - rather than by open surgery - larger catheters are needed to place through the femoral artery in the thigh, the point where the devices are inserted.
One of our students, Rachel Rakvica, noticed that the larger openings allowed for newer techniques to close the artery - a novel approach that did not require incisions,
said Chandra.We've obtained a provisional patent, with the hope of further developing the technology.
Amy Lerner, the academic director of CMTI, has had a great deal of experience guiding students in the medical device development process. An associate professor of biomedical engineering, Lerner directs the senior design course, a year-long program in which teams of students partner with clinicians, companies, and other institutions to solve real-world engineering problems.
The new center will be critical in helping take student and faculty design solutions to the next step,
said Lerner.We'll work closely with industry to address design challenges, which will also help prepare our students for careers in healthcare.
The executive director of CMTI will be Greg Gdowski, who earned a Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at Boston University and worked as a research fellow at Blue Highway, an engineering services company in Syracuse. Gdowski believes the new center will increase the national visibility and stature of the University of Rochester and its biomedical engineering program. He added,
It will also help foster growth and collaboration between faculty at the Hajim School and those at the Medical Center.
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September 7, 2012
CTSI Featured Personality: Doran Mix
The CTSI supports medical students interested in a year-out experience of mentored clinical and translational research. Most students will enter through the Academic Research Track (ART), which is the foundation of the CTSI program. Doran Mix, a CTSI TL1 Predoctoral Program trainee, and his team completed a number of multidisciplinary projects that apply biomedical engineering concepts to solve problems in cardiovascular medicine. Mix says his experience with the CTSI has inspired him to continue to do research for the remainder of his career. To learn more about Doran Mix and his research visit his CTSI information page and the Cardiovascular Engineering Lab (CVEL).
Recent Publications
- (2013 Apr 20). Cross-sectional area for the calculation of carotid artery stenosis on computed tomographic angiography. J Vasc Surg. In press.
- (2013 Mar 01). Surface curvature as a classifier of abdominal aortic aneurysms: a comparative analysis. Ann Biomed Eng. 41, 562-76.
- (2013 Feb 01). Hemodynamic study of arteriovenous fistulas for hemodialysis access. Vascular. 21, 54-62.
