Research
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2005-2009)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay, Dr. Patrick Antonelli
Tympanostomy tubes are implanted into the tympanic membrane to relieve pressure caused by infection. However, tympanostomy tubes are afflicted with many drawbacks including tube occlusion, premature extrusion, and surgical removal. Treatments to relieve these drawbacks include various coatings, and compositional changes. Our reserach has shown that tubes composed of biocompatible, biodegradable polymers can decrease the prevelance of tube plugging, premature extrusion, and surgical removal. The objective of this project is to develop a biocompatible tympanostomy tube that can maintain extended ventilation and then degrade on command.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2005-2007)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay, Dr. Patrick Antonelli
The development of a non-invasive stable mechanical scaffold for repairing tympanic perforations will alleviate the need for invasive surgery. Currently tympanic perforations are repaired with tympanoplasty surgery which is expensive, time consuming, and can be painful for the patient. The development of a non-invasive implant will provide a simple office procedure for repairing perforations. In addition, the patch can be constructed to encapsulate growth factors which further promote healing. The objective of this project is to develop a stable gel scaffold that will provide a mechanical bridge to promote cellular ingrowth.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2003-2008)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay, Dr. Patrick Antonelli
An in-vitro ear chamber can be used to measure the formation of occlusions in tympanostomy tubes. Currently the only method for assessing the performance of various tube coatings and compositional changes is to use patient studies. These studies can take as long as one year to complete, require the permission of both the parents as well as patients (children), and are expensive to complete. The use of an in-vitro ear chamber will save time, money, and reduce the number of variables. The objective of this project is to develop an in-vitro ear chamber along with a data acquisition system to measure the formation of tympanostomy tube occlusions.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2004-2006)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay
The viscosity of synovial fluid can be used as a marker for disease. Specifically, it has been shown that synovial fluid viscosity decreases as arthritis progresses. In addition, the quantity of fluid obtained also decreases over time. As a result it has become increasingly difficult to measure the viscosity of very small fluid samples using traditional equipment. The use of a microrheometer enables us to accurately measure the viscosity of very small samples ~0.01ml. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of exercise on the viscosity of synovial fluid in horses.
RTI BIOLOGICS, Alachua FL
Internship: Research and Development (2004)
Advisor: Anglela Carr
RTI BIOLOGICS designs and manufactures human tissue implants. Sports injuries resulting in a torn ACL or other soft tissue trauma can be severe resulting in surgical treatment. The implantation of ligament replacements consisting of human tissue explants may be required in extreme cases. The goal of this research was to develop a mechanical testing device that enabled testing (tension) of explant samples prior to implantation.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2004-2005)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay, Mattias Steinberg
The use of ventricular assist devices (VAD) for patients waiting for heart transplants or those suffering from severe heart attacks has become common. A VAD is a device that assists the ventricles in pumping blood throughout the body. One important drawback of current pumps' design is intermittent fluid outflow. The design of a VAD with continuous outflow will increase the capacity of the pump, and decrease the size (pediatric use). My role in this project was to assist undergraduate students in the (Integrated Product and Process Design) IPPD team with designing and testing the device, as well as manufacturing some of the components.
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA, Gainesville, FL
Research, Cellular Mechanics and Biorheology Lab (2002-2004)
Advisor: Dr. Roger Tran-Son-Tay,Dr. Mark Garby
Abdominal aortic aneurysms are a significant cause of death among patients with high blood pressure. In addition, imaging techniques used to determine aneurysm growth are becoming increasingly common. However, they only represent a brief window into the formation of aneurysms. The development of an in-vitro model to record the deformation of the vessel wall under various conditions would be ideal. The objective of this project was to develop an in-vitro vessel chamber that can be used to record the formation of an aneurysm. To achieve this, a parallel plate flow chamber was developed to mimic the vessel dimensions.