- mobileApp to encourage people
to take up the invitation for Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm screening and help
prevent deaths in the over 65s - increasing understanding of FGM/C
and healthcare for women living with it - 3D printing used to create
affordable, haptically-accurate breast models to help more women examine
themselves and increase early detection of tumours - tackling low rates of medication
adherence in patients with high blood pressure.
Masters students in Medical
Visualisation and Human Anatomy, a programme co-delivered by The Glasgow School
of Art and Glasgow University, have unveiled innovations showing how
visualisation can help address some of the major health issues facing the world
today. From early breast cancer detection to encouraging take up of Abdominal
Aortic Aneurysm screening, management of
hypertension and helping communication around FMG, the students have
harnessed the power of 3D digital technology to increase understanding and
uptake of vital treatment.
Helping to increase uptake of Abdominal
Aortic Aneurysm screening
to prevent unnecessary deaths
Ella Jones has addressed how to increase uptake of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm screening, a programme that aims to reduce the mortality associated with this condition. With aging the wall of the aorta can weaken and swell leading to an Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm. “Mortality from an AAA rupture is significant at 85%,” explains Ella. “:and the screening programme is thought to reduce the deaths of the affected population by 50%,”.
“However, the uptake of AAA screening can be improved, as the public awareness of AAA screening is less in comparison to other screening programmes, specifically within certain groups of the population.”
Men are 6 times more likely that women to suffer from AAA and occurs in 5% of the male population of Scotland. All men are invited to undertake the screening at 65, but at the moment women are not. To make sure that uptake is maximised it is important that people understand exactly what an AAA is and what treatment is available if detected early.
“The benefits of the AAA screening programme are significant, yet it is not as well supported in comparison to other programmes,” says Ella. “There is evidence that Mobile Health apps have been successful in increasing the uptake of other screening programmes as well as increasing participants’ knowledge and awareness.”
Ella has therefore created a mobile public health app that could be used to assess awareness of the NHS AAA screening programme and to collect data on the enrolled cohort’s perceived usability of the app and their digital literacy.
Due to Covid-19 Ella has not yet been able to work with AAA specialists, but is hoping to conduct further research and development of the app, including having the input of AAA specialists, to validate the app and its contents. Ultimately she hopes that it will be possible to have her app on the NHS Apps Library.
Helping understanding of female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C)
and
healthcare for women living with it.
Medical illustrator, Olivia Holuszko,
had undertaken independent research prior to beginning her programme of study
at the GSA. One of the projects she had worked on was the physiology of lactation with
illustrations of the anatomy of the breast. “In my research I was faced with
gaps in research on women’s bodies and began to notice discrepancies in the
representation of women in scientific literature, probing my interest in the
matter,” explains Olivia. “This Master’s programme at the GSA-Glasgow
University was an opportunity to explore medical visualisation in terms of 3D
modelling and interactive application development. I wondered how these
newfound skills could be applied to help advance research in women’s health,
particularly in challenging the stigmas surrounding sexuality and genital
anatomy,” she adds.
Against this background Olivia
began to look into the issue of female genital mutilation or cutting (FGM/C) and
healthcare for women living with it. She reached out to Dr. Jasmine Abdulcadir
, a leading expert in the field whose
own department at the University of Geneva was already looking at creating some
kind of 2D mobile application for women to access information about FGM/C.
“It was a serendipitous union and
an exciting opportunity for me to work with the experts in Geneva,”
says Olivia. “We hope that my 3D
models may be incorporated in a future version of their mobile application, and
that the insights from the health care professionals from around the world that
I interviewed in the evaluation of my 3D application will inform further
research in the use of this media in improving communication of medical
information as well as educating both patients and practitioners about the
anatomy of FGM/C.”
Developing affordable, haptically-accurate
breast models
to help early detection of cancer
Breast cancer is the leading type
of cancer among women worldwide and is on the rise in low-income counties. One
of the most effective ways of detecting breast cancer early is for women to
regularly examine themselves, especially in areas where there is less access to
other early detection methods such as mammograms. But how do women know what to
look for? This is the question that Hayley Fig Barber’s
project has addressed.
Whilst current models to help
teach breast self-examination do exist they are often oversimplified and lack a
range of skin tones and sizes. Hayley therefore looked into whether harnessing
the potential of 3D printing to create moulds (constructed from clinical data) and
make affordable, haptically-accurate breast models could mean more women are
able to learn about how to look for and identify tumours, especially in parts of the world where access to other early detection methods are not so readily available or affordable.
Early results showed that the
methodology of using 3D printed moulds was sound and the project could act as a
pilot study in body tissue haptics. With more research it could well be used to create the kind of models that could make a difference in parts of the world where access to other early detection methods are not so readily available or affordable.
Tackling low rates of adherence to
high blood pressure medication
Low rates of
adherence to high blood pressure medication can cause serious medical problems.
Angela Douglass set about
creating an engaging animation to tackle this problem. Working with Dr Craig Daly, an expert
in hypertension research (School of Life Sciences at the University
of Glasgow), Angela focussed on using datasets from his research to create an
accurate model of the small artery which plays a vital role on regulating blood
pressure. The idea was to give patients a better
understanding of arteries.
Patients have been asked to
feedback on the animation that is being made available via a specially
developed website, particularly on whether it helped to increase their
understanding and whether they would make changes to their lifestyle as a
result. Any person currently taking medication for high blood pressure is
welcome to take part in the ongoing study. https://angeladouglass.wixsite.com/bloodpressure
To see more about the work of Glasgow School of Art Masters students visit:
https://gsapostgradshowcase.net
For further information
contact:
Lesley Booth
07799414474