Automated Control of External Ventricular Drain for Neuro-ICU

Duncan, Matthew; Guo, Yujie; Liu, Haotian; Zhang, Haoran

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Automated Control of External Ventricular Drain for Neuro-ICU

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Treating traumatic brain injury, subarachnoid hemorrhages, and other neurological conditions is a process that requires constant intervention from nurses and allows for little rest for patients. One symptom seen often in these cases is increased intracranial pressure (ICP). External ventricular drains (EVDs) are devices used to divert excess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from a patient’s skull in order to manage a patient’s ICP. These devices allow nurses to control the drainage rate of a patient’s CSF to maintain a constant ICP. The ICP is set by physically leveling the EVD with a reference point (Kocher’s point) on the patient’s head. However, existing EVDs need frequent re-leveling due to patient movements, leading to constant intervention by hospital staff and disruption for the patient. Our project automates the leveling of the EVD to improve the accuracy of ICP measurements and control. Our system provides real-time alerts to caregivers when changes occur and demonstrates accurate head motion tracking of targeted patients. This ensures automated alignment regardless of patient movement, which minimizes staff intervention and enhances patient comfort.

This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

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