The cardiovascular system is a complex network of organs, vessels, and tissues that work together to perform several key functions in the human body such as supplying nutrients, oxygen, and hormones to the body, and removing carbon dioxide and waste products. The heart generates blood flow by contraction of muscle fibers oriented in a complex spiral pattern. It is doing this without interruption by constantly adapting itself to new physiological and pathological conditions. But sometimes, small irregularities in blood flow present already in the fetal heart or secondary to acquired disease or surgery can lead to a cascade of more severe abnormalities, including thrombus formation, hemolysis, atherosclerosis, vascular aneurysm formation, and heart failure.
We aim to gain incremental insight into the cardiovascular system in health and disease by development and application of novel imaging-based methods for assessment of cardiovascular function, blood flow, hemodynamics, and tissue characteristics. Advanced imaging, modelling, simulation, and artificial intelligence methods for the assessment of the cardiovascular system have the potential to provide earlier and more accurate detection, improved treatment planning and follow-up of a spectrum of cardiovascular disorders, leading to optimized treatment of the individual patient, a better patient quality of life and reduced healthcare spending.
For decades, we have developed and applied cutting-edge cardiovascular imaging methods and are today consisting of a combination of international competence and preserved close collaborations with surrounding clinical departments and health care. Research based on actual clinical problems and issues, a translational approach, is still one of our most common threads. Much of the daily work originates from the Center for Medical Image Science and Visualization (CMIV), located in the center of Linköping University Hospital.
Today, we work with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), modelling and simulation approaches, as well as artificial intelligence (AI) in several parts of the body such as the heart, the carotid arteries, and the aorta. We are continuously open to new collaborations with other researchers and master project ideas.
Photo credit Emma Busk Winquist
