Rebecca Graham looks at a new exhibition at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Science designed to educate the public about heart health and disease.
Heart disease is one of the leading causes of premature death and disability in Ireland. About 9,000 people die from this disease each year, and it is estimated that 80% of these deaths are preventable.
A new exhibition at RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences hopes to educate the public about heart health and disease, and showcase the latest technology in the diagnosis and treatment of heart conditions.
‘Heart: more than a beat’ is the first exhibition at the Humanarium, a newly opened space in RCSI’s new research and education building on St Stephen’s Green in Dublin city centre. The space will host an ongoing program of events exploring life sciences and medical research.
Opening the exhibition today (10 February), Humanarium director Dr Alison Boyle said the aim was to show “the science and stories behind every heartbeat”. Welcome to the platform Ciarán Sloan, father of little boy James who had heart surgery at just 10 months old. At 20 weeks pregnant, Sloan and her partner Cara McAreavey discovered that James had a very bad heart. Since then, the family has had a long journey of treatment and recovery.
The human side of cardiac research
The exhibition features a 3D printed model of a human heart that surgeon Mr Jonathan McGuiness used to prepare for James’ operation at Crumlin Hospital. Sloan described McGuiness as a hero in their family for his work with James. He also said that the show could be very useful for parents in a situation similar to his. “It’s not like that [just] in medicine, it shows the human side,” he said.
James’ mother Cara McAreavey spoke to me about the family’s journey. She described being “blindsided” by the initial diagnosis, but later felt grateful that James could be operated on.
He recalled that the family, who traveled from Belfast to Crumlin for surgery, were in the ward being prepared for two operations only to be canceled at the last minute to make room for emergencies. Although this was difficult, he said they were warned by the medical team that this could happen and they were thankful that James was not an urgent case. He spoke with obvious pride in James’ recovery, describing him as incredibly resilient. I asked him about his feelings about all this and he said that his attitude is whether to sink or swim, and he chose to swim.
As we spoke, three-year-old James was happily playing with his dad in the exhibition area, looking healthy and full of energy – a perfect reflection of what the event is all about and why heart research is so important.
Quality research
Senior anatomy lecturer at RCSI, Dr Aamir Hameed spoke to me at the event about his research on the heart device. Hameed recently won funding under Research Ireland’s Frontier for the Future program to develop cardiac support machines for young children.
Hameed is the founder of Pumpkinheart, an RCSI spin-out that has pioneered a device to treat advanced heart failure, which is featured in the show. Hameed explained that when patients have diastolic heart failure, the heart muscle tightens, which prevents the left ventricle from filling properly, which reduces blood flow in the body and causes fluid overload. He showed me an implantable pump his team had developed to reduce pressure in the left ventricle and improve blood flow.
This device is in the early stages of development. Pumpkinheart has raised €700,000 in seed funding and is now hoping to raise €2.5m to move into pre-clinical studies. Hameed said the device provides a proven solution to an unmet clinical need, but funding remains a challenge, and they are looking to the US for investment. He hopes to be in a position to move on to human trials in two years.
Hameed is also developing biosensors to work with the pump device. The idea is that the sensors will provide data about the device to help prevent complications and reduce hospital readmissions. He said recently one of his students asked what would happen if a patient forgets to charge the device and this simple issue is a sensor that can help prevent it by creating a low power warning.
I asked Hameed how he finds time to research and teach so close to the start and he laughed and said: “It’s not easy … but it’s my passion.”
Keeping your heart healthy
A report from the National Clinical Research Office, as reported by RTÉ today, found that the number of people who called emergency services within an hour of experiencing symptoms of a heart attack fell last year compared to the previous year, leading to calls for a renewed focus on public awareness of the early signs of a heart attack.
I asked Hameed about this and he said that people often think that they will not get a heart attack because of the preconceived notions of what a sick person should look like, and this is especially a problem for young patients. He said the show helps educate people about heart health. He thinks there is still more to be done to help the public recognize heart disease and take steps to protect their health.
Journalist Maura Derrane, an ambassador for the Irish Heart Foundation, spoke at the event and encouraged people to get information about heart health from reliable sources and not from social media. He talked about how women in particular can ignore the symptoms and how these can be masked by menopause. He said, for example, that he has been very busy checking his cholesterol regularly since he turned 50.
For more information about the exhibition, visit the Humanarium website. The Humanarium is sponsored by Blackrock Health, AIB, Lanas and HSE Healthy Ireland.
Written by Rebecca Graham
Rebecca Graham is a Frontiers science reporter at the FutureNeuro Research Ireland Center for Translational Brain Science at the RCSI University of Medicine and Health Sciences. Frontiers is a science journalism program funded by the European Research Council. Rebecca was the managing editor at Silicon Republic.
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