Life Long Joints Seminar

“THE VIRTUAL PATIENT: ADVANCES IN COMPUTATIONAL METHODS AND THEIR IMPACT ON TREATMENT STRATEGIES”

A seminar for clinicians and clinical researchers given by Prof. Stephen Ferguson, Institute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich

Computational methods have already established themselves as an essential and indispensable part of clinical diagnosis, decision making and treatment planning in orthopaedics. For example, computer driven, semi-automated image analysis methods allow the rapid extraction of extended information from conventional x-ray, MR and CT imaging datasets. Computer-assisted navigation methods facilitate the precise execution of complex surgical procedures in a minimally invasive fashion. Generic biomechanical simulations have extended our knowledge of the typical response of an orthopaedic implant in an average patient, subjected to selected, representative loading cases.

Recent advances in computer simulation methods, the nearly exponential growth of computational power and the universal adoption of content-rich medical data storage have opened the door to ever more sophisticated applications of computer models in orthopaedics. We have entered the era of the ˮVirtual Patient“. Now, with a manageable effort, it is possible to create a series of simulation models which capture the variation of essential morphological, health and lifestyle parameters across an entire patient population. Such models can be applied to explore the pathomechanics of musculoskeletal disorders and the potential outcome of new treatment strategies with a breadth and depth not before possible, either in the research or clinical environment.

Prof. Stephen Fergusson will discuss latest developments and especially the following topics based on work conducted as part of the LifelongJoints project – a 5 year European funded project aimed at extending the lifespan of hip implants. See attached flyer

1. Population-based musculoskeletal modelling  of activities of daily living

2. Simulation based predictions of surgical  outcome

3. Accelerated Pre-Clinical Testing through  Computer Simulation

More on the project itself and a list of publications can be found on the website www.lifelongjoints.eu.