Helping patients understand cardiac amyloidosis

Under an R&D agreement with INSA Strasbourg, Centre hospitalier de Haguenau (Nord Alsace hospital cooperation) and its innovation and engineering platform (FabLab) set the topic of the 2024 Inventive Design Contest. Dr Charlotte Dagrenat, a cardiologist at the hospital, had found her patient-education tool insufficient to explain the disease. The collaboration started at the initiative of Prof. Nadia Bahlouli, deputy director of the ICube laboratory.

Cardiac amyloidosis comes from an abnormal protein infiltrating body tissues, notably the walls of the heart, which become abnormally stiff and thick. This can tire the heart and cause electrical and valve problems. The task: a patient-education tool that makes this mechanism understandable to patients.

Four pairs of third-year plastics-engineering apprentices (FIP PL3) worked through the second semester of 2024: understanding the problem, formulating it, then solving it with the inventive design process taught in the course (TRIZ), using the Finder interface created by the AIARD Chair.

Four patient-education tools presented at the defence on 23 May 2024. The jury chose a winning pair; the prize was awarded on 9 October 2024 with Dr Dagrenat, Romuald Boné (Director of INSA Strasbourg), Denis Cavallucci and Hicham Chibane.