Experts in Teamwork -The Challenging Case of Developing an Artificial Mitral Valve

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The challenging case of developing an artificial mitral valve»
“The mitral valve is one of the heart’s four valves. It provides that no blood flows back into the left atrium during systole (i.e. when the left ventricle contracts and pumps blood into the body). This valve is the one subjected to the highest pressure loading in the heart, and is an impressive construct that can function properly for billions of heart beats. The valve is also prone to several diseases, both from reduced tissue properties and as a result of other heart conditions. Then the heart surgeon has a difficult choice to make, whether try to repair or replace it completely by means of an artificial valve. After decades of research still there is no optimal artificial valve for the mitral position (artificial valves perform better in the aorta position).

The task in this project is to address several issues related to the artificial mitral valve: get an overview of the healthy and pathologic valve; identify heart conditions that reduce the valve capability; find current prosthesis designs and what materials that are used; establish weaknesses in the current designs and material choices; discuss how computer models and simulation tools can help in getting better understanding of the functionality of the valve; point out possible future directions for new designs.

This task is very inter-disciplinary. Groups can be combined with different combinations of students with background in biophysics, biomechanics, materials technology, biotechnology (artificial tissue, tissue engineering), applied mathematics, structural mechanics, fluid mechanics, industrial design etc.