Biomedical engineering: Life enhancing technology for a healthier tomorrow

3 d printer printing a heart 650 x 366

The human body, with its intricate complexity, outshines even the most advanced feats of engineering. 

Visitors to our marquee were able to meet our biomedical engineering experts to explore Mediscan, a transparent, 3D-printed, life-sized arterial system, complete with a heart and arteries extending to the head, arms, kidneys, and legs.

On loan from the University of Galway, this remarkable display included a pulsatile pump to simulate the beating heart and blood flow dynamics, providing a breath-taking glimpse into the wonders of human anatomy. 

It helps medics with their training by affording a visualisation of both how blood circulates as well as the environment in which stents need to work. The body is used for education and training to illustrate the process of installing heart stents into the human body.

What does Mediscan have to do with engineering?

  • Biomechanics – How bodies move
  • Functional genomics – Developing tools to control genes
  • Bio instruments – Measuring biological systems 
  • Medical devices – Creating new body parts
  • Medical imaging – Looking inside a body from the outside
  • Biomaterials – Developing materials to work with the body

Did you know?

  1. 3D printing is used to create models of human organs
  2. The model shows the circulatory system and highlights the process of installing heart stents
  3. The stent is a small permanent implant which is inserted by feeding a narrow tube through an artery in the leg or wrist under X-ray guidance. It is a mesh that is expanded in location by inflating a small balloon using the tube
  4. (8,000) thousands stents are installed into people in Ireland every year

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