Biomedical Engineering MSc

This module aims at providing students with an understanding of human physiological function from an engineering, specifically mechanical engineering, viewpoint. Introduction to human anatomy and physiology with a focus on learning fundamental concepts and applying engineering (mass transfer, fluid dynamics, mechanics, modelling) analysis and medical devices applications.

Medical devices bring great benefit to patients, but it is essential to ensure that such devices are fit for purpose. This module explores the principles of regulation, and demonstrates how two of the world's largest regulatory frameworks (European and American) reduce risks and ultimately benefit the patient, the user and the manufacturer. You will simulate companies operating in this area, and learn the roles of Quality Standards, CE Marking, Notified Bodies, Competent Authorities and other key agencies. You will develop appreciation for the changing regulatory landscape, with special attention to the emerging use of computational modelling in this context.

This module recognises the role that ionising and non-ionising radiation plays in imaging diagnostics and considers both planar and volumetric imaging modalities in the form of planar X-Ray imaging, volumetric computed tomography (CT), and other modalities, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). An important element of the module is to consider the underlying physics and engineering principles, so attention is given to ionising/non-ionising radiation and imaging theory as well as the technologies themselves. The principles elaborated within the lectures are consolidated through lab work which encourages exploration and deeper understanding of the taught material.

The mathematics underpinning the technologies is also explored, forming a complementary component of the assessed material. On completion of the module, the student will have a strong grasp of X-ray and other imaging technologies such as MR imaging and the challenges of their applications in the clinical environment.

This module aims to combine computational modelling with state-of-the-art virtual reality and demonstrate the synergistic value of these technologies. You will apply advanced finite element and finite volume modelling skills to investigate biomechanics problems associated with both cardiovascular and musculoskeletal systems, and deliver your results in the virtual reality format. You will also experience clinical radiation technologies such as X-ray and Angio systems through VR. The course involves a combination of theory (lectures) and computational labs. You will use the virtual reality tablets to study human anatomy and the virtual reality lab to deliver your final presentation.

The aim of the project is to give you the opportunity to develop further your advanced knowledge and skills and apply these to a specific problem or set of problems.

The complexity of biological systems typically requires numerical approaches to solve the governing systems of differential equations. This module introduces the finite difference and finite element techniques, with examples of applications for clinically relevant problems. This includes both direct implementation using programming methods and use of established computational codes. Module assessment focusses on the application and critical review of finite difference and finite element analysis.

This module explores the intersection of biomedical engineering and women's health, focusing on how engineering innovations can improve healthcare outcomes for women. Students will study female anatomy and physiology throughout a women's lifespan to understand how these influence disparities in disease prevalence, healthcare outcomes and medical device design. 

Designed for students with a background in engineering, biology or healthcare, this module is interdisciplinary in nature and will include a series of seminars that consider women's health and biomedical engineering from different perspectives. Students will critically evaluate existing and emerging technologies, such as diagnostic devices and therapeutic systems, and assess the potential of biomedical engineering to improve women's health outcomes. 

Ethical, cultural and societal factors will be discussed and students will be encouraged to consider issues of inclusivity and equitable access in the design and implementation of medical technologies for women and under-represented groups.

By the end of the module, students will have developed an understanding of how biomedical engineering can contribute to improved women's health, critically analysed how research in the field of biomedical engineering addresses women's health and developed a greater awareness of the challenges and opportunities in this area.

This unit provides a comprehensive overview of the practical and theoretical techniques for physical and chemical imaging of natural tissues, cells, and synthetic materials. The underlying physical principles behind each imaging approach will be addressed. Accordingly, the unit covers imaging techniques used for analysing biological samples, including electron, optical, fluorescent, multi-photon and super resolution microscopy techniques, alongside atomic force microscopy (AFM), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR) and Raman spectroscopy.

This module aims to provide you with an overview of the state-of-the-art approach for modelling the musculoskeletal system from a biomechanical point of view. The course starts with a brief review of vectors and tensors, followed by anatomy and physiology of the musculoskeletal system. You will then be introduced to a range of modelling and experimental methods applied to a variety of bones and muscles. More specialised topics will be introduced towards the end of the course giving examples where biomechanical models can be used in various clinical applications.

The unit introduces students to basic concepts and techniques such as hypothesis testing and confidence interval estimation in statistics. Students will learn some simple statistical methods and the principles behind some advanced methods such as regression. It will equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to understand and critically appraise statistics in research literature.The course is not aimed at 'doers' of statistics, that is, students who are going to design their own studies to collect and analyse their own data. It will not teach you how to analyse, present and report your own data.

Students work in interdisciplinary teams to create solutions to a real problem provided by a real customer. Typically the customer will be a member or members of the community e.g. children with disabilities, terminally ill people, etc. Student teams learn how to solicit needs from user interviews and go on to create (and where possible prototype) solutions that meet functional, commercial and social requirements. Teams pitch their concept and business start up proposals to an invited audience and assessors.

This module aims to provide students with an overview of in vitro cell and tissue growth and how this is measured and modelled. Students will undergo hands on training in cell culture by creating a case study in vitro system in which they will monitor cell growth and characteristics using microscopy and biochemical assays. They will learn how to calculate and predict growth rates and test conditions that may influence these. They will learn about the appropriate controls and standards that must be included to achieve robust data. By doing this they will also learn and practise professional laboratory skills.

This module will explore the range of materials, both synthetic and natural, that can be used as implants in the human body, from a materials science perspective. This module will highlight the materials properties of implant materials, and will give an overview of possible host responses to the implant materials. Additionally, both physical and chemical routes to reduce the host response will be discussed. Case studies of hard and soft tissue implants will be discussed. Finally, the module will highlight the use of artificial organs. 

This lecture course continues the systems based introduction to human physiology and anatomy which were introduced in level 2 and explores through lectures the tissue engineering approaches that are being developed to cope with disease, failure and old age in body systems. The emphasis is placed primarily on generic technologies of relevance to tissue engineering recognising that this is an enormous and growing field. Thus the first four weeks focus on generic issues relevant to tissue engineering of any tissues and then for the remainder of the course exemplar tissues are selected to illustrate current tissue engineering approaches and identify the challenges that remain ahead. The lectures are supported by linked tutorials which focus on:(a) assessing the students understanding of their current knowledge so that they achieve immediate and informal feedback, and(b) giving the students the experience of working in small groups to apply what they have learnt in the preceding lectures to current problems. Thus a key feature of this module is to stimulating the students in critical thinking, essentially by giving them a toolkit to equip them to look critically at any tissue engineering challenge and come up with pertinent questions and experimental approaches.

Biomechanics of human movement is the science concerned with the internal and external forces acting on the human body and the effects produced by these forces. This module will teach the students both the kinematics (the branch of biomechanics of entailing the study of movement from a geometrical point of view) and kinetics (the branch of biomechanics investigating what causes a body to move the way it does) of human movement and leverage on practical laboratory sessions to expose them to the most advanced technologies to measure and model the associated mechanical phenomena of interest.

This module aims to provide you with an overview of state-of-the-art modelling approaches used to study the cardiovascular system from a biomechanical perspective. The module starts with a brief review of relevant principles and theories in fluid mechanics, followed by anatomy and physiology of the cardiovascular system, including blood rheology and vessel tissue mechanics. The second part gives you an overview of the modelling, analytical and experimental methods applied to several parts of the cardiovascular system. The final part will focus on more specialised topics, like the application of modelling techniques to investigate correlations with disease.

This module introduces you to the interdisciplinary field of biomechanics. You will learn how to identify fluid dynamic or fluid-structure interaction processes that occur in biological systems and will gain an understanding how to translate them into mathematical models to use as a basis to analyse them. The mechanical analysis will be carried out using the concepts of continuum mechanics. The module will cover the physics of internal flows (cardiovascular flows) and external flows (swimming and flying).

The module is designed to give students an introduction to human factors and user-centred design and how they are used within the design process (alongside engineering analysis, manufacturing considerations, marketing etc.). The module concentrates on developing an understanding of how populations are characterised and how that influences design decisions. It gives an overview of the theory and practices surrounding design with humans before asking students to apply those theories in a series of case studies. The module gives students an opportunity to work within a team and learn from peers as they tackle the case studies.