University of California, San Diego
Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
MAE 156B: Senior Design Project
Sponsored by Dr. Ian Yuan
Project Background
Dr. Ian Yuan is an anesthesiologist and as such he works on operations know as regional nerve blocks. These operations require the anesthesiologist to specially target a nerve on the patient but they required the use of both hands to track the ultrasound sensor and guide the needle to the nerve. The problem that arises is that another person is needed to inject the anesthesia from the syringe. Shortage of qualified personnel results in the regional block operations have a longer operation time due to finding a person who can inject the anesthesia.
Doctors use the ultrasound armament to see were the needle should be placed and if the fluid is being placed at the right location. Another important part is that is can be hard to detected if the needle is in the nerve or vein at some parts of the body. That's why we need it to aspirate the syringe which is when we draw back on the plunger. If the fluid is clear then the doctor can proceed if not and it contains blood in the syringe then it is pumped back in and the needle readjusted.
Description of Design Solution
The general prototype of the concept is an automated syringe pump that mimics and simulates a person using the syringe. It would be voice activated so that Dr. Yuan would be able to deliver the anesthesia while his hands are occupied. He would also be able to adjust the amount of anesthesia while working, not just before the operation. It would be able to match aspirations needed to validate that Dr. Yuan placed the needle in the proper place. If blood is visible then he can adjust and move the needle without having another person in the room with him.
A quick video demonstrating how the prototype works and the different functions within the application.