cardiac anatomy revealed by micro-CT of archived heart samples
Research type
Research Study
Full title
cardiac anatomy revealed by micro-CT of archived heart samples
IRAS ID
209987
Contact name
Jonathan Jarvis
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Alder Hey NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
Professor Jarvis and Dr Stephenson have worked with the cardiac surgical team at Alder Hey Hospital to develop a method to investigate the microanatomy of soft tissue specimens by contrast-enhanced micro computed tomography. They have found that a solution of iodine can be used to provide sufficient contrast between tissue types so that it is possible to visualise the cardiac conduction system in 3 dimensions. They have published the technique in several substantial papers. We wish to apply the same technique to two hearts from the Alder Hey archive for which the parents of the deceased children gave consent that the speciments could be used for research. We will assess whether the technique we have developed can give similar 3 dimensional information in these congenitally malformed hearts; such a visualisation would provide useful new information on the differences to the normal morphology in shape and arrangement of tissues, and will be useful for education in congenital malformation and for surgical planning.
REC name
West Midlands - Edgbaston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
17/WM/0064
Date of REC Opinion
28 Apr 2017
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion