Press Releases

Researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS, the University Medical Center Freiburg, and Stryker Leibinger GmbH & Co. KG have been awarded the Research Prize for Digitalization in Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery 2024 for their publication entitled “Validation of a Finite Element Simulation for Predicting Individual Knee Joint Kinematics.” The award ceremony took place on October 25, 2024, during the German Congress for Orthopedics and Trauma Surgery (DKOU 2024) in Berlin.

Heart valve reconstruction is a highly complex operation that requires a great deal of expertise from surgeons. On the occasion of World Heart Day on September 29, 2024, the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS will present the MINIMAKI assistance system. Based on artificial intelligence methods, it enables interdisciplinary cardiac teams from surgery, cardiology and anesthesia to plan heart valve procedures quickly and optimally using mixed reality.

The use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems shows promise in medicine, where they can be used to detect diseases earlier, improve treatments, and ease staff workloads. But their performance depends on how well the AI is trained. A new multi-task approach to training AI makes it possible to train foundation models quicker and more cost-effectively, with less data. Researchers are turning to this approach to compensate for the shortage of data in medical imaging — and ultimately save lives.

Image-guided thermal ablation therapy is a patient-friendly, minimally invasive, and cost-effective tumor treatment method. This involves advancing a special needle directly into a tumor using CT and ultrasound to apply heat and destroy it. Until now, interventional radiologists could only estimate the extent to which the applied procedure destroys tumor cells. Hence, thermal ablation is associated with higher local tumor recurrence rates compared with treatment alternatives, causing a real barrier to wide adoption.

Reliable and feasible early detection of Alzheimer’s disease is the goal of DEBBIE, an international joint project under the EU Joint Programme – Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND). It is coordinated by the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS in Bremen, which has received national funding from the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) for its work. In this project, MRI images shall uncover the extent to which the blood-brain barrier loses function before the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease appear. To speed up development, Fraunhofer MEVIS has now enhanced their own MRI scanner to allow much more effective cooperation with clinical partners.

Complications can always occur during operations, sometimes resulting in death. A new project called KIPeriOP aims to minimize the risk of such complications. The project is based on digitized decision guidelines and self-learning algorithms intended to provide reliable risk assessment based on individual patient data. What is the probability that certain complications will occur, and how might they be avoided? The project is coordinated by Prof. Dr. Anja Hennemuth from the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS and Prof. Dr. Patrick Meybohm from the University Hospital of Würzburg. Clinicians from the Asklepios Medical School GmbH, the University Hospital Frankfurt and the Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin are involved. They are working together with experts from the fields of AI, user guidance, ethics, and health economics.

It took more than six years to plan and build, but now the new building of the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS on the campus of the University of Bremen is completed. To celebrate the inauguration, the institute opens its doors, albeit only virtually due to the current pandemic. After the welcome addresses by Dr. Claudia Schilling, Bremen Senator for Science and Ports, by Alexander Kurz, Executive Vice President Human Resources, Legal Affairs, and IP Management of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, as well as by Prof. Dr. Bernd Scholz-Reiter, President of the University of Bremen, Fraunhofer MEVIS will present a sample of its current research activities. The online event will take place on Friday, June 18, from 2 to 5 pm. The event will be held in German, although the plenary session will be simultaneously interpreted into English, and some presentations will be given in English. Anna Stankiewicz (violin) and Elena Tomarchio (violoncello) from the Konsonanz chamber ensemble provide musical contributions.

Prof. Ron Kikinis, the former director of the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS in Bremen, has accepted a renowned appointment at Harvard Medical School in the United States. Since March 1, 2020, Prof. Horst Hahn has been the sole director of the Institute – for the prior six years, both had acted in dual leadership roles. Kikinis has assumed the B. Leonard Holman Endowed Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School. This endowed chair is one of the highest academic distinctions at the prestigious Medical School and is only awarded to researchers who are worldwide leaders in their field.

During the “STEAM Imaging II” artist residency at Fraunhofer MEVIS, two artists from Singapore develop an interactive installation and participate in a youth workshop.

Endovascular interventions are an integral part of the medical routine with 6 million procedures done worldwide annually. During the procedure, doctors insert a thin, flexible wire to navigate the catheter into the blood vessels to apply stents or remove blood clots. In order to navigate the catheter precisely through the vessels, patients undergo X-rays during the procedure. One downside is that “patients and doctors are exposed to a considerable amount of radiation,” says Dr. Torben Pätz, mathematician at the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Medicine MEVIS in Bremen. “In addition, the Xrays merely show a 2D projection instead of a 3D image, which can sometimes impede precise localization of the catheter.” Fraunhofer MEVIS is developing a system called IntelliCath (Intelligent Catheter Navigation) to remedy these problems.