| PhD Seminar

Name of the Speaker: Ms. Navya Rose George (EE20D014)
Guide: Dr. Jayaraj Joseph
Co-Guide: Dr. Mohanasankar S
Venue: ESB-244 (Seminar Hall)
Online meeting link: https://meet.google.com/xok-xvut-wjw
Date/Time: 13th May 2025 (Tuesday)
Title: System and Methods for Non-Invasive Assessment of Jugular Venous Pulse Contours

Abstract :

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the predominant cause of global mortality, and while conventional risk assessment can predict major CVDs, it often fails in detecting structural and functional cardiac dysfunctions. The jugular venous pulse (JVP), a characteristic indicator of cardiac function, is shaped by right atrial pressure changes during the cardiac cycle, offering a valuable window into cardiac function. Quantification of the jugular venous contour features can hence reliably assess the structural and functional CVDs, such as pulmonary hypertension, valvular malfunctions, and pericardial diseases. Current methods for JVP assessment mainly rely on invasive pressure measurements, demanding expertise and critical care settings.

My work proposes an instrumentation system for high-fidelity jugular venous pulse contour acquisition and methods for assessment of its contour features. The developed single-element ultrasound system could acquire high-fidelity JVP pulses (SNR > 20dB) with a temporal resolution of 4 ms and an amplitude resolution of 10 μm. The beat-to-beat JVP pulse contour markers were assessed using the developed cycle segmentation and contour feature analysis algorithms. The performance of the system and method was validated against a reference ultrasound imaging system in a preclinical study on 65 asymptomatic volunteers (Age: 21-50 years). The maximum and minimum jugular venous diameter measurements showed a statistically significant and strong correlation with the reference measurements (r = 0.93 and r = 0.86, respectively, p < 0.001). The devised algorithms effectively segmented JVP cycles and analysed their contour features with a sensitivity and specificity of 92%. The feasibility of the developed algorithms to quantify JVP contour features was validated on simulated datasets, invasive (vitaldB), and in-vivo datasets, indicating a lower coefficient of variation (~8%) in the beat-to-beat estimates of JVP contour features.

Additionally, we have introduced the concept of local venous pulse wave velocity (vPWV) as a new marker for assessing vascular health. The measurement system, consisting of a dual-element ultrasound transducer, was used to evaluate the pulse transit time, and the corresponding vPWV was computed. Results from controlled invivo studies on human participants (N=25) revealed a coefficient of variation (~14 %) in the beat-to-beat estimates of vPWV and showed strong consistency across different transit time estimation methods. Finally, the seminar would conclude by acknowledging the measurement concerns and suggesting potential future research directions.