I've been working pretty hard on my project for the last few weeks. I had a few problems and a few set-backs, but I've discovered something really key today (the porosity of an intraluminal thrombus in an abdominal aortic aneurysm is 0.91 by the way).
The good news about that is that I've now had enough courage to update my Gantt chart, which is now somewhat improved on the last time I did it. I'm still behind schedule, but key thing... I'm not *as* far behind schedule as I was .... AND.... I know what I'm doing tomorrow and Tuesday more-or-less, so hopefully I'll catch up some more by mid-week.
Sunday 1 July 2007
Wednesday 20 June 2007
Things I have learnt so far about AAAs
There are 6 books related to my project piled up on my desk at the moment. I spent about an hour in the main library yesterday. Today I spent about 3 hours in the medical library and another hour in the main library. I've found out quite a bit about aneurysms.
Off the top of my head I can inform anyone who might ask that aneurysms generally occur on the aorta (the main artery going from the heart that feeds oxygen and other good stuff to the body) and that they occur far more commonly in the abdominal region than in the thoracic region although they can form in both places at the same time.
When aneurysms form on the abdominal aorta they generally occur just below the renal arteries (arterial branches that feed the kidneys). There are several different types of aneurysm, but the fusiform type is the one which occurs most commonly in the abdominal aorta. Fusiform aneurysms are where the artery gets gradually wider and then thinner again rather than suddenly ballooning out on one side which would be a saccular aneurysm.
Abdominal aortic aneurysms are most likely to rupture once they reach a diameter of 6cm, but they can grow bigger in some cases. Then again, in other cases an abdominal aneurysm may rupture before it reaches a diameter of 6cm. 0.3% of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms occur when the aneurysm is less than 4cm in diameter though. The "normal" diameter of the aorta in the abdomen ranges from about 1.5cm to about 2.1cm. That depends on gender and a few other factors.
In general 3% of people get aneurysms, but if your parent has an aneurysm you are far more likely to develop an aneurysm than someone who is not related to anyone with an aneurysm.
The problem with abdominal aneurysms is that they rarely present with any symptoms at all. Most people who have them will not know about them unless they are screened. The problem with screening is that the most effective and most useful screening method is computed tomography (CT), which is rather expensive and a little time-consuming. It is debatable (and people are debating it) whether or not it is worth the money it would cost to screen all people who may be "at risk".
Generally it is older people (over 50) who develop aneurysms. Men are most at risk of developing an aneurysm, but females are more at risk of rupture according to many studies.
Off the top of my head I can inform anyone who might ask that aneurysms generally occur on the aorta (the main artery going from the heart that feeds oxygen and other good stuff to the body) and that they occur far more commonly in the abdominal region than in the thoracic region although they can form in both places at the same time.
When aneurysms form on the abdominal aorta they generally occur just below the renal arteries (arterial branches that feed the kidneys). There are several different types of aneurysm, but the fusiform type is the one which occurs most commonly in the abdominal aorta. Fusiform aneurysms are where the artery gets gradually wider and then thinner again rather than suddenly ballooning out on one side which would be a saccular aneurysm.
Abdominal aortic aneurysms are most likely to rupture once they reach a diameter of 6cm, but they can grow bigger in some cases. Then again, in other cases an abdominal aneurysm may rupture before it reaches a diameter of 6cm. 0.3% of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms occur when the aneurysm is less than 4cm in diameter though. The "normal" diameter of the aorta in the abdomen ranges from about 1.5cm to about 2.1cm. That depends on gender and a few other factors.
In general 3% of people get aneurysms, but if your parent has an aneurysm you are far more likely to develop an aneurysm than someone who is not related to anyone with an aneurysm.
The problem with abdominal aneurysms is that they rarely present with any symptoms at all. Most people who have them will not know about them unless they are screened. The problem with screening is that the most effective and most useful screening method is computed tomography (CT), which is rather expensive and a little time-consuming. It is debatable (and people are debating it) whether or not it is worth the money it would cost to screen all people who may be "at risk".
Generally it is older people (over 50) who develop aneurysms. Men are most at risk of developing an aneurysm, but females are more at risk of rupture according to many studies.
Saturday 12 May 2007
Seek and you shall find...
I have long been a believer that the internet knows everything, you just have to know how to find it. Google tends to help. Wikipedia is also pretty useful at times. However if you're not *quite* sure what you're looking for then the search is made that bit more difficult.
My supervisor advised me to do some reading about aneurysms and other medical things that are related, so that I can get my head round all the concepts. So I asked google and wikipedia about them. At first they told me some new and interesting information that I didn't know before, but then the trail dried up. Wikipedia wasn't as in-depth as I wanted to be. Somehow I had to find out how to get up to the next level.
It's like playing sonic the hedgehog. You know there's a magical level 10. But you're stuck in level one. Only you don't go up a level when you collect gold coins.
For years I've heard about "Athens". Not the one in ancient Greece, but the service for accessing some online journals for free if you're a student. The one in Aber was well advertised, but I never used it. The one here is reasonably well hidden away and I have very little idea about how on earth I should use it. Tonight I was determined though that I would find something useful.
After some searching on the uni library website I found a link to somewhere else where I searched for "aneurysm" and it spat out several reasonably useful articles. They're level 10 articles though and I don't understand all of the big long words.
Tomorrow various online dictionaries will get used in an effort to understand and learn something about aneurysms.
My supervisor advised me to do some reading about aneurysms and other medical things that are related, so that I can get my head round all the concepts. So I asked google and wikipedia about them. At first they told me some new and interesting information that I didn't know before, but then the trail dried up. Wikipedia wasn't as in-depth as I wanted to be. Somehow I had to find out how to get up to the next level.
It's like playing sonic the hedgehog. You know there's a magical level 10. But you're stuck in level one. Only you don't go up a level when you collect gold coins.
For years I've heard about "Athens". Not the one in ancient Greece, but the service for accessing some online journals for free if you're a student. The one in Aber was well advertised, but I never used it. The one here is reasonably well hidden away and I have very little idea about how on earth I should use it. Tonight I was determined though that I would find something useful.
After some searching on the uni library website I found a link to somewhere else where I searched for "aneurysm" and it spat out several reasonably useful articles. They're level 10 articles though and I don't understand all of the big long words.
Tomorrow various online dictionaries will get used in an effort to understand and learn something about aneurysms.
Sunday 29 April 2007
Sometimes I get frustrated by fortran!
I like FORTRAN. Really I do. I like creating programs that work and give me answers that mean things and that I can use to help me write reports and things for uni.
I have problems with it though. It took me ages to understand what I'm trying to do with my latest program. Creating a fortran program based on misunderstandings is never a good idea. I now have the concept though. I understand roughly what I'm trying to do.
The only thing is that now I know what I'm doing I can't figure out how to tell the computer the right fortran so that it will give me the desired answers.
I have problems with it though. It took me ages to understand what I'm trying to do with my latest program. Creating a fortran program based on misunderstandings is never a good idea. I now have the concept though. I understand roughly what I'm trying to do.
The only thing is that now I know what I'm doing I can't figure out how to tell the computer the right fortran so that it will give me the desired answers.
Wednesday 25 April 2007
My summer project
My project title is:
"Species (MMP) transport in an abdominal aortic aneurysm with a porous ILT."
A quick vocab guide might be of use to those who do not have a clue what that means...
MMPs are Matrix-metalloproteinases. I'm not entirely sure what they are, but I have a feeling they're tricky buggers.
An aneurysm is when your artery swells up like a balloon due to a problem in the artery wall (usually thinning caused either by age or by an accident). The aorta is the main artery going from your heart up and round and then down towards your legs. Aneurysms may rupture and when they do the chances of survival are not good. Abdominal aortic aneurysms are known as AAAs or Triple-As.
ILT is an Intraluminal Thrombus. A thrombus is a blood clot. Intraluminal means it's within a structure (so within the artery).
Hemodynamics is the study of the flow of blood.
Overall agreed objectives:
Write a medical review of AAAs including MMP influence.
Write a scientific review of AAAs including hemodynamics, experimental and computer models.
Develop a simple steady flow model of a AAA with a porous thrombus and mass transport.
Develop a simple pulsatile flow model of a AAA with a porous thrombus and mass transport.
Mesh a realistic model taken from segmented CT images.
Incorporate the simplified anatomical model developed above into the realistic anatomical model.
Analysis of interactions between the thrombus, blood, and the artery wall with respect to AAA progression.
Deliverable(s):
1. A simple CFD model of AAA mass transport in steady flow with a porous ILT.
2. A simple CFD model of AAA mass transport in pulsatile flow with a porous ILT.
3. A realistic model of AAA mass trans port in pulsatile flow with a porous ILT.
4. A project report
I'll be using ANSYS FLUENT to model the aneurysm in 2D and 3D. The 3D version will come from a CT scan from a real-live poorly person. I hope that they got patched up okay and are still alive.
I expect to be very busy this summer. The project is due to start at the beginning of June. Before then I am going to have to do some medical reading. I'm really excited about this project. It sounds really cool (and hard work) and interesting.
"Species (MMP) transport in an abdominal aortic aneurysm with a porous ILT."
A quick vocab guide might be of use to those who do not have a clue what that means...
MMPs are Matrix-metalloproteinases. I'm not entirely sure what they are, but I have a feeling they're tricky buggers.
An aneurysm is when your artery swells up like a balloon due to a problem in the artery wall (usually thinning caused either by age or by an accident). The aorta is the main artery going from your heart up and round and then down towards your legs. Aneurysms may rupture and when they do the chances of survival are not good. Abdominal aortic aneurysms are known as AAAs or Triple-As.
ILT is an Intraluminal Thrombus. A thrombus is a blood clot. Intraluminal means it's within a structure (so within the artery).
Hemodynamics is the study of the flow of blood.
Overall agreed objectives:
Write a medical review of AAAs including MMP influence.
Write a scientific review of AAAs including hemodynamics, experimental and computer models.
Develop a simple steady flow model of a AAA with a porous thrombus and mass transport.
Develop a simple pulsatile flow model of a AAA with a porous thrombus and mass transport.
Mesh a realistic model taken from segmented CT images.
Incorporate the simplified anatomical model developed above into the realistic anatomical model.
Analysis of interactions between the thrombus, blood, and the artery wall with respect to AAA progression.
Deliverable(s):
1. A simple CFD model of AAA mass transport in steady flow with a porous ILT.
2. A simple CFD model of AAA mass transport in pulsatile flow with a porous ILT.
3. A realistic model of AAA mass trans port in pulsatile flow with a porous ILT.
4. A project report
I'll be using ANSYS FLUENT to model the aneurysm in 2D and 3D. The 3D version will come from a CT scan from a real-live poorly person. I hope that they got patched up okay and are still alive.
I expect to be very busy this summer. The project is due to start at the beginning of June. Before then I am going to have to do some medical reading. I'm really excited about this project. It sounds really cool (and hard work) and interesting.
Tuesday 24 April 2007
Some cool links and news
I got pointed to this YouTube video at the weekend, it is *really* cool and is the sort of thing that makes me sqwee about my subject. You should watch it because it has pretty lights and bouncing shampoo!
Another cool YouTube video is this one about ferro fluids. Ferro fluids are magnetic and... well watch the video and see for yourself what they do.
Today I read the news that my old uni is yet again doing something really cool now that I'm not there to see it. I missed their big show of venus passing in front of the sun about 3 years ago and now I'm missing the first ever 3D images of the sun. Traumatised I am!
That's all for the links for now, I'm incredibly busy with my MSc these days and don't get much time for thinking about any other maths stuff other than coursework and I don't really want to write about that any more than necessary. I do however have something to write about my upcoming summer project which should be a lot of fun, but also very hard work. Before I do that, however, I need rest and I need to do a little more research on it.
Another cool YouTube video is this one about ferro fluids. Ferro fluids are magnetic and... well watch the video and see for yourself what they do.
Today I read the news that my old uni is yet again doing something really cool now that I'm not there to see it. I missed their big show of venus passing in front of the sun about 3 years ago and now I'm missing the first ever 3D images of the sun. Traumatised I am!
That's all for the links for now, I'm incredibly busy with my MSc these days and don't get much time for thinking about any other maths stuff other than coursework and I don't really want to write about that any more than necessary. I do however have something to write about my upcoming summer project which should be a lot of fun, but also very hard work. Before I do that, however, I need rest and I need to do a little more research on it.
Tuesday 3 April 2007
Foodstuffs that make me think of maths...
I see it as a true sign of a geek when someone sees their "area" of science/maths/engineering etc in things that they do/see in everyday life. This is one reason why I consider myself to be a maths geek.
When I make custard from scratch, I measure out the custard powder and the sugar. Then I pour in a drop of milk and stir. If there isn't enough milk for the powder then the spoon is really difficult to move. But if you take the spoon out and watch how the mixture moves on its own you can in fact see that at least part of it is a liquid because it's ever so slowly moving to the lowest point possible in the jug.
Recently I tried those Innocent smoothies for the first time. They are very nice to drink, but for a student they're rather expensive. Right now I'm at home for Easter and Mum has a blender, so I can make my own smoothies. It's amazing that you put solid fruit in and get liquid juice out. It's wonderful! It appeals to my inner geek.
When I make custard from scratch, I measure out the custard powder and the sugar. Then I pour in a drop of milk and stir. If there isn't enough milk for the powder then the spoon is really difficult to move. But if you take the spoon out and watch how the mixture moves on its own you can in fact see that at least part of it is a liquid because it's ever so slowly moving to the lowest point possible in the jug.
Recently I tried those Innocent smoothies for the first time. They are very nice to drink, but for a student they're rather expensive. Right now I'm at home for Easter and Mum has a blender, so I can make my own smoothies. It's amazing that you put solid fruit in and get liquid juice out. It's wonderful! It appeals to my inner geek.
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