People are often
curious as to what bioengineers actually do. I’ve gotten some very imaginative
assumptions, such as creating human-animal mutants! Bioengineers are actually
responsible for creating, designing, and researching to improve the ability of healthcare
providers to care for patients. This includes a wide variety of occupations
such as designing medical equipment and prosthetics, developing new
pharmaceuticals, discovering more effective methods of medical imaging or
processing, and statistical analysis of biological data just to name a few.
Currently, I am
conducting research to find a correlation between differential pulse transit
time and blood pressure. I first became interested in this project while
completing a writing assignment for a technical writing class. I needed to
interview one of my professors about their research process and after talking
with Dr. Vasiliki Ikonomidou I was eager to get involved. She graciously
allowed me to learn from her and join her neuroimaging laboratory, and it has
been one of the best decisions of my academic career. Not only have I learned
more about bioengineering, but I have also gained numerous skills from Dr.
Ikonomidou and other undergraduate and graduate students in the lab. In
addition, they have advised me on areas to consider for a career and preparing
for interviews. We also have a really good time brainstorming, problem solving,
or just hanging out in the lab!
A “day in the
research of Lauren” consists of preforming experimental trials and analyzing
the data I’m receiving. I’m using video footage to observe the differential
pulse transit time, or the difference in the pulse of blood flow beneath the
skin with each heart beat on two distal locations, by detecting the change in
color on the subject’s forehead and palm. I am using statistical analysis to
observe whether there is a correlation between this and blood pressure, which I
am taking with a traditional blood pressure cuff. In order to cause a rise and
fall in blood pressure, the subject does light exercise on an exercise bike.
The end goal of the larger project is to create a remote blood pressure
detection application. It has been very exciting to work on this project and it
is exciting to see different areas I am gaining experience in that I didn’t
expect. For instance, this week I have spent a considerable amount of time just
learning about cameras and their settings. Research always seems to take me
down paths I didn’t expect, but I am really enjoying the adventure!
