Project List.docx - Washington University in St. Louis



Project List TOC \o "1-3" Current Teams PAGEREF _Toc280821394 \h 2An Intelligent Pair of Bifocals PAGEREF _Toc280821395 \h 2Wheelchair Transportation PAGEREF _Toc280821396 \h 2Compression Stockings PAGEREF _Toc280821397 \h 2Data Record Encryption Technologies PAGEREF _Toc280821398 \h 2A Better way to view Bedside Cystoscopy PAGEREF _Toc280821399 \h 3MRI Head Stabilization PAGEREF _Toc280821400 \h 3Gene-oscopy PAGEREF _Toc280821401 \h 3Epharmix PAGEREF _Toc280821402 \h 4World Health Team PAGEREF _Toc280821403 \h 5Water Out Of Thin Air (WOOTA) PAGEREF _Toc280821404 \h 5Black Lung PAGEREF _Toc280821405 \h 5Female Condom PAGEREF _Toc280821406 \h 5Past Ongoing Projects PAGEREF _Toc280821407 \h 6Kinocom PAGEREF _Toc280821408 \h 6The Mint Group PAGEREF _Toc280821409 \h 6Data Dog PAGEREF _Toc280821410 \h 6Medicrate PAGEREF _Toc280821411 \h 7Epi Squared PAGEREF _Toc280821412 \h 7QuantifyPX PAGEREF _Toc280821413 \h 7Current Teams3D printing for Pre-operative GuidanceClinical Need: Surgeons use a variety of methods to plan operations using CT and MRI scans. But 2D images, and even 3D reconstructions, cannot provide the same information as holding and perhaps even cutting a 3D model. For complex surgeries physical models offer the potential to reduce the morbidity and mortality.Proposed Solution: 3D printers allow surgeons to create physical models and improve their planning. Additionally, physical models are useful for educating patient about their surgeries. We are developing a stand-alone product that prints 3D models given a CT and/or MRI scan.An Intelligent Pair of BifocalsClinical Need: Modern glasses are clumsy. They only have one prescription in many cases, or if they have two, the one prescription obscures the other, such as in bifocals or varifocals. Many people carry only reading glasses around with them for shortsighted reading during a small percentage of the day. Proposed Solution: We are changing this by creating a pair of glasses that can change prescriptions with just the touch of a button by using an effect called electrowetting. Wheelchair TransportationClinical Need: 1.5 million people use manual wheelchairs in the United States. Unfortunately, wheelchairs limit the user’s ability to interact with most vehicles since vehicles are not designed for wheelchair interfacing. Vehicles can be structurally modified to accommodate wheelchairs, but normal insurance does not cover these costs and such modifications make resale difficult. Many manual wheelchair users choose to transfer from their wheelchair into an un-modified vehicle. These repetitive transfers put wheelchair users and caregivers at risk of injury. Over 70% of manual wheelchair users experience overuse injuries that limit their independence. In addition causing injury, storing wheelchairs inside vehicles is time consuming and space intensive. Solutions on the market do not address these problems, and do not accommodate most wheelchair and car models.Proposed Solution: We are designing a device to automatically store and un-store manual wheelchairs above or behind vehicles. This will minimize risk of injury and facilitate quick and space-efficient wheelchair storage. Our device will interface with most manual wheelchairs on the market and it will securely attach to vehicles without requiring structural modifications. It will also weigh less than 90 pounds and operate in less than 2 pression StockingsClinical Need: Venous Pooling is related to various diseases such as DVT, Orthostatic Hypotension and Varicose. Wearing compression stockings can help prevent those conditions, but due to the difficulty of use, a lot of patients suffer pain while trying to apply compression stockings or completely give up on compression stockings, simply because they’re hard to put on (mainly due to the high amount of tension on the stockings). It is a prevalent problem among the elderly, young women, airline business travelers, and athletes.Proposed Solution: We are trying to solve this problem by designing a compression stockings that goes on loose, and when it's in place, the user can tighten it quickly and easily. Data Record Encryption TechnologiesClinical Need: Sharing electronic medical records (EMRs) between physicians is very difficult. Sharing EMRs is slow and archaic, and there is no method for different EMR systems to communicate. As a result, doctors either need to spend large amounts of time trying to locate a patient’s medical records, or they proceed without necessary information. This can lead to duplicated tests, increased costs, and (in a worst case scenario) harmful drug interactions.Proposed Solution: We are able to cut this time down dramatically by storing a patient’s medical records in a centralized cloud-based system. We can then issue digital ID cards to patients and doctors, allowing them to access those records. A patient can be given an ID card by his or her primary care physician, allowing for basic information on the patient (e.g. name, date of birth, advance directives, etc.) and his or her medical records to be stored in an encrypted form on our servers. A Better way to view Bedside CystoscopyClinical Need: Current bedside cystoscopy depends on a scope that must be looked through directly by the operator. This makes it uncomfortable to navigate, impossible for other physicians to see the image, and does not allow sharing of the images for later review or patient education. Cystoscopes are already designed to connect to a wired camera in the OR. Proposed Solution: We are designing a wireless camera that will reconstruct and broadcast the image to a monitory to directly solve this issue.MRI Head StabilizationClinical Need: Both the newborn MRI head stabilizer and ultrasound IV guide projects were proposed by clinicians who felt that these items would help them in their practice and/or research. The need for a head stabilizer exists in newborns as well as adults, and would be a great first step in reducing the number of unusable images and reducing MR procedural time. Proposed Solution: The newborn MRI head stabilizer will be a plastic helmet that is split in the median plane. The padded halves will gently clamp the infant’s head in place and this assembly will be secured to a base plate that supports the rest of the infant’s body. The unit will be adjustable and reusable. Gene-oscopyClinical Need: Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths and kills over 51,000 men and women each year. The gold standard for diagnosing colon cancer is a colonoscopy, which is a problematic procedure. Colonoscopies are performed only once every ten years for patients over the age of 50, they require full bowel preparation, anesthetization at the doctor’s office and they cost roughly $1,200 if no complications arise. Proposed Solution: Gene-oscopy attempts to rectify these problems by proposing an alternative screening method that evaluates the mRNA in stool samples. Patients would provide a fecal sample to the doctor, the mRNA in the stool would be extracted and the expression profile of this sample would determine if the patient requires further care. The goal of Gene-oscopy is to reduce the cost of screening and improve patient compliance to reduce the number of preventable colorectal deaths in this country. Epharmix ()Clinical Need: In spite of modern medicine’s stunning advancement over the past 80 years, its treatments, diagnostic equipment, and implementation are notoriously inefficient at reaching and helping large segments of the population. Proposed solution: Epharmix has developed electronic interventions for addressing each of these inefficiencies, ranging from dialysis compliance to sickle cell treatment. The ultimate goal is a set of prescribable electronic interventions that physicians can identify and treat selectively depending on patient’s social and biological history. In order to reach this goal, Epharmix is currently starting ~5 clinical trials in a variety of fields to test these interventions.World Health TeamWater Out Of Thin Air (WOOTA)Problem: Lack of access to clean water and sanitation kills children at a rate equivalent to a jumbo jet crashing every four hours. 780 million people worldwide lack access to clean water. The problem is two-fold: not only is the drinking water in many developing countries not suitable for human consumption, it is also incredibly difficult to obtain. It can take up to three miles (walking each way) for a resident of a village to reach adequate drinking water. However, the magnitude of the problem extends beyond ascertaining adequate hydration; poor access is a root of many other issues, such as disease, dehydration, and malnutrition. While current solutions exist, they are often ineffective because they are expensive and impractical in undeveloped areas. One of the main problems is that existing solutions rely on the grid, which is unreliable or nonexistent in third world countries. Proposed Solution: We are aiming to fix this pressing problem with a solution that is able to condense moisture from the air, thus providing a clean source of water. Condensing water provides a sanitary alternative to current solutions since condensation is free of contaminants commonly found in groundwater. Black LungProblem: Black Lung or Coal Worked Pneumoconiosis (CWP) is a widespread disease that is caused by long exposure to coal dust. 76,000 miners died from black lung between 1968 and 2010. This chronic disease causes a range of respiratory and cardiovascular complications. There is no cure for CWP and studies show that CWP can progress even after exposure has stopped. Therefore the only solution to eliminating CWP is through prevention. Proposed Solution: Our solution is to design a mask that addressed the comfort and accessibility of the dustproof masks. We would be using galvanized water that will work as the filter core of this mask. Galvanizing the water can trap light and/or charged particle better. Also concentrating the particles at the electrode can prevent saturation at most of the solution. The device uses an air blower to promote comfort of breathing. The excess air will come out through the one?way airway at the top. The device is to be put on the belt behind the wrist to maximize stability. Female CondomProblem: Since 1981, an estimated 36 million people have died of HIV/AIDS. 1.6 million of those deaths occurred in 2012, along with 2.3 million more individuals becoming newly infected with the virus. Using a condom during sexual intercourse greatly reduces the risk of transmitting the virus. This becomes a problem in many third world countries, where many men are not expected to wear a condom and the women may have no say in the matter. If women attempt to wear a female condom, the men may force them to take it out. Proposed Solution: produce a female condom that is much more discreet than current models. Current models of the female condom hang outside of the body and tend to have multiple problems that include slipping out of place, not fitting correctly, and being generally unpleasant. A female condom that is less awkward and discreet enough that a man might not notice it could prevent many cases of HIV/AIDS being transmitted in third world countries.Past Ongoing ProjectsKinocom34290001714500(Kinetic communication for paraplegic patients)Devices that enable paraplegics to use a computer are typically static and rely on a single muscle system (e.g. eye tracking systems). Paraplegics’ mobility and preferences can vary widely, even within a single patient (in the case of neurodegenerative disease). The kinoCOM is an adaptable learning device that can be attached to the users body and trained ton control a cursor. The prototype has two ‘control rings’ that can be manipulated by the user. Each control ring contains an inertial measurement units (IMUs, or combined accelerometer-gyroscopes) that capture 6 degrees of freedom. We created this HCI (human computer interface) device for a stroke patient who is almost completely paralyzed and unable to speak. Kinocom won 1st Place at IDEA Labs Demo Day and Second place in the National MicroMedic contest. Kinocom won a $2000 electronics kit to further improve the device from the MicroMedic Contest.07556500The Mint GroupThe Mint Group is taking a fresh approach to nasal endoscopy and is well poised to change the existing paradigm of ENT care. ENT physicians and administrators are frustrated with a lack of ergonomics in current designs and excessive initial and maintenance costs. Our solution is a medical imaging system comprised of an endoscope with disposable optics and wireless attachments that conforms to commodity standards. Our system will reduce the number of endoscopes and personnel a clinic must employ, reducing initial costs by 90% and operating costs by 25% . Our endoscope system will drastically improve ENT patient care at a significantly reduced administrative cost.24003009017000Data DogWe are developing a system for enhancing therapy for stress and anxiety disorders through wearable technology. The DataDog companion app closes the care gap between sessions with the therapist. Patients engage with their therapy regimen in their daily lives by interacting with our therapy tools. Our system mitigates stress events by monitoring autonomic signals and prompting the patient to pursue coping techniques when they are experiencing stress. We ultimately aim to expand usage of mobile and wearable technology for mental health applications. The DataDog team plans on seeking professional advice for IP and business strategy as well as running a pilot study with an alpha version of the mobile app. 011430000MedicratePhysicians who want to share their knowledge are often stymied by privacy restrictions or technical limitations. Noteworthy surgeries, painstakingly recorded rarely make if off the camera, let alone onto a platform where others can learn from the experience. Medicrate is a service that allows physicians to store and share files securely. Users upload videos and other documents - all of which are stored on your institution's private servers. Users can restrict access to yourself orshare the files with groups that you join or create. Medicrate also allows user to generate short quizzes based on your material making it an excellent tool to assess residents' and students' understanding of content. Medicrate gives users complete control over your information while preserving the highest standards of security and confidentiality468630019304000Epi Squared 010033000Wireless Implantable DevicesEpi squared is tackling the problem of providing power to implantable devices (e.g. Pacemakers, to LVADs) non-invasively. We are currently targeting our project towards recharging of implanted nerve stimulation devices used in epilepsy. We have a working prototype and a provisional patent. We were finalists in the Olin Cup business development competition. We recently presented our device at the Kairos Society Global Summit in Seattle.EnterogaugeThe EnteroGauge is a digital "tape measure" that attaches to standard enteroscopes and can reliably display how far an enteroscope was advanced into the small intestine, which can be 20 feet long.?The EnteroGauge will improve patient outcomes by providing gastroenterologists with the exact location of a lesion in the small intestine; this will allow the gastroenterologist to monitor it over time and help surgeons reliably locate it for removal. We have filed a provisional patent and are in the process of conducting animal trials to gauge the effectiveness of our prototype. 3886200-11430000IdealTapThe IdealTap Lumbar Puncture Chair is a manipulable chair that takes advantage of the two main positions that patients assume during a lumbar puncture procedure, and moves the patient smoothly between the two.? Our device makes the spinal tap procedure faster and easier for the physician, as well as safer and more comfortable for the patient.? We have completed a proof-of-concept prototype and are now in the process of manufacturing a prototype that is safe to be used in the clinic.? We will use this clinical prototype in the hospital to market the many benefits of using the IdealTap Chair.?QuantifyPXClinical Need: The physical exam is largely non-quantifiable, resulting in small use for follow-up exams. One classic example is Jugular Venous Distention (JVD) measurement. Today JVD measurement is a qualitative measurement of congestion in the vascular system. However, the information that could be gleaned from it is high as a method to noninvasively monitor heart disease without the need for echocardiography.Solution: Simple light reflection pen light that projects a green cross onto the jugular vein can be accurately watched for a simple double shift classic of the vein. This can be used to identify the Jugular vein far better, and allows for quantitative measurement. ................
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