A Model and Simulation With Therapeutic Device-Protocol Design Implications for Acute and Chronic Wounds.

An understanding of healing processes for different tissues and organs, along with the development of appropriate therapeutic devices and treatment protocols, requires an appreciation for the mechanisms-of-action and sequencing of many interconnected chemical, electrical, mechanical, and optical activities. Unfortunately, the substantial contributions that endogenous electrical mechanisms-of-action provide in healing and regulation are often overlooked, resulting in a poor transfer of knowledge from science, to engineering, and finally, to therapy. The wide variety of healing processes, their therapeutic implications, and the devices and protocol designs that are most effective cannot be understood or addressed adequately without an understanding of the endogenous electrical mechanisms-of-action associated with wound healing.

Modeling of coupled differential equations for cellular chemical signaling pathways: Implications for assay protocols utilized in cellular engineering.

Cellular engineering involves modification and control of cell properties, and requires an understanding of fundamentals and mechanisms of action for cellular derived product development. One of the keys to success in cellular engineering involves the quality and validity of results obtained from cell chemical signaling pathway assays. The accuracy of the assay data cannot be verified or assured if the effect of positive feedback, nonlinearities, and interrelationships between cell chemical signaling pathway elements are not understood, modeled, and simulated.

A multi-scale feedback control system model for wound healing electrical activity: therapeutic device/protocol implications.

Regulation, growth and healing in biological systems involve many interconnected and interdependent processes that include chemical and electrical mechanisms of action. Unfortunately, the significant contributions that electrical events provide are often overlooked; resulting in a poor transfer of knowledge from science, to engineering and finally to therapy. Wound site electrical processes can influence cell migration, fluid transport, cellular signaling events, gene expression, cell differentiation and cell proliferation; affecting both form and function at the cell, tissue and organ levels.

High-frequency and low-frequency chest compression: effects on lung water secretion, mucus transport, heart rate, and blood pressure using a trapezoidal source pressure waveform.

High-frequency chest compression (HFCC), using an appropriate source (pump) waveform for frequencies at or above 3 Hz, can enhance pulmonary clearance for patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Using a trapezoidal HFCC source pressure waveform, secretion of water from epithelial tissue and transport of mucus through lung airways can be enhanced for patients with CF and COPD. At frequencies below 3 Hz, low-frequency chest compression (LFCC) appears to have a significant impact on the cardiovascular system.

A simulation tool to study high-frequency chest compression energy transfer mechanisms and waveforms for pulmonary disease applications.

High-frequency chest compression (HFCC) can be used as a therapeutic intervention to assist in the transport and clearance of mucus and enhance water secretion for cystic fibrosis patients. An HFCC pump-vest and half chest-lung simulation, with 23 lung generations, has been developed using inertance, compliance, viscous friction relationships, and Newton's second law. The simulation has proven to be useful in studying the effects of parameter variations and nonlinear effects on HFCC system performance and pulmonary system response.