Ventricular Volume Sensor
Research on the ventricular volume sensor is embedded in the Download Zurich Heart project. A major goal of the project, is the physiological adaptation and control of ventricular assist devices. The current controler relies on a left ventricular volume signal. The ventricular volume sensor project investigates physical principals, which allow the deduction of the ventricular volume of the human heart. A viable way is to use the reflection of ultrasonic waves at the myocardium to estimate the ventricular volume. Furthermore, we have observed the magnitude of the R-wave in the internal ECG signal to change with ventricular volume.
An accurate silicone heart model allows for in-vitro ultrasound testing in patient specific heart models. The models were fabricated with the help of additive manufacturing technologies. Trabecular structures of the size down to the size of 2 mm are resolved.
Heart Phantom
We have aquired the left ventricular volume (LVV) signal, the left ventricular pressure (LVP) and the internal electrocardiogramm (ECG) in vivo. We found that the ventricular volume can be estimated by using only the ECG. The applicability and robustness will be further investigated in the future.
