Microcirculation research in community hospitals - challenges and chances
Hartmut Kern1, Nivin Sharawy2, Joel Sardinha3
1Department of Anesthesiology, Intensive Care Medicine and Pain Therapy, German Red Cross Hospital, Berlin-Köpenick, Germany.
Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation
|September 19, 2017
Summary
Community hospitals are suitable for clinical studies, but microcirculation research faces challenges. Key issues include automated image analysis software, hardware improvements, and funding, particularly personnel costs.
Area of Science:
- Clinical research
- Biomedical engineering
- Medical imaging analysis
Background:
- Community hospitals offer high patient volumes ideal for large-scale clinical investigations.
- Microcirculation studies, crucial for understanding various diseases, face significant implementation hurdles in these settings.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and elaborate on the key challenges hindering the widespread adoption of microcirculatory studies in community hospital settings.
- To highlight areas requiring technological and financial advancements for successful clinical research.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of existing literature and practical considerations for conducting microcirculatory research in non-specialized clinical environments.
- Identification of critical bottlenecks in image analysis, hardware development, and resource allocation.
Main Results:
- A significant lack of reliable, automated software for analyzing microcirculatory images is a primary obstacle.
- Hardware limitations concerning portability and miniaturization require further development for practical field use.
- Funding, especially personnel costs, presents a substantial barrier to conducting these specialized studies in community hospitals.
Conclusions:
- Addressing the identified challenges in automated image analysis, hardware, and funding is essential for advancing microcirculation research in community hospitals.
- Overcoming these feasibility issues will enable larger, more representative clinical studies, improving our understanding of microvascular function and disease.
