About
The Spine Biomechanics Group (SBG)
The Spine Biomechanics group is focused on the application of experimental, computational, imaging and machine learning techniques to investigating how disease, aging, and injury degrade spinal tissues' biomechanics and function. The research team at SBG covers both novel experimental and theoretical contributions and transnational efforts for the development of clinical image-based diagnostics to improve patients' spine musculoskeletal healthÂ
Members of the SBG collaborate with other departments within Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, with other researchers at the Harvard Medical School and local universities such as Harvard, MIT and the University of Massachusetts Amherst and with researchers and clinicians throughout the world.
What is our main mission?
Our long-term goal is to improve human health by developing precision diagnostics, incorporating our group's experimental, computational, musculoskeletal simulations and machine learning for use in diagnosis, analysis, and treatment of spinal disease to advance individualized patient management. The group's research focus is on several interrelated areas:
- Experimental biomechanics
- Finite element simulation
- Musculoskeletal simulation
- Clinical image data analysis
- Machine learning
- Pre-clinical models
Research at SBG
The Spine Biomechanics Group studies how cancer, aging, injury and disability affect the biomechanical function and failure of the human spine. Our group combines strengths in experimental and computational biomechanics, image analyses and machine learning methods. Our long-term goal is to develop precision diagnostics to aid individualized patient management. The group's research focus is on several interrelated areas:
- Experimental biomechanics of spinal instability, vertebral fracture and augmentation.
- Biomechanics of Intervertebral disc degeneration and failure.
- Finite element simulation of the vertebral fracture and Intervertebral disc degeneration.
- Musculoskeletal simulation for evaluation of task and disease on spinal loading and fracture risk.
- Diffusion MRI (weighted and tensor-based) for intervertebral disc research.
- Machine learning for segmentation, registration and analysis of cancer patients' vertebrae and spinal musculoskeletal from medical CT and MRI spine data.
- Pre-clinical studies of the effect of irradiation on spinal mechanics.
Through these efforts, our group aims to develop precision, patient-specific, diagnostic protocols and new treatment modalities to improve prevention, reduce patients' disability and aid patient management by restoring musculoskeletal health.