BME team awarded prize for invention

A Hopkins undergraduate biomedical engineering team took home second place and a $10,000 prize in the undergraduate division of the annual Collegiate Inventors Competition for AccuSpine, a probe that assists with spinal fusion surgeries.

The award was presented at a ceremony held at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in Alexandria, Va. on Monday.

AccuSpine assists with the placement of screws during spinal fusion surgeries, making the process more accurate. The device provides the surgeon with active feedback that helps the surgeon prevent misplaced screws, which can cause damaged nerves and arteries. It also uses vibrations and flashing LED lights to communicate with the surgeon when something is going wrong.

AccuSpine was created by eight biomedical engineering undergraduates: Clay Andrews, Anvesh Annadanam, Ravi Gaddipati, Luis Herrera, Bradley Isaacs, Adarsha Malla, Erica Schwarz and Eric Xie. The team worked under Chetan Bettegowda and Sheng-fu Larry Lo, who are both physicians from the Hopkins School of Medicine.

Annadanam, the AccuSpine team leader, expressed his excitement and gratitude.

“We are very fortunate to have had the opportunity to participate in this distinguished competition,” Annadanam said. “We are very thankful for the support of our biomedical engineering department. Our team will continue to work hard on the development of our device.”

A team of three students from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, who presented an industrial 3-D printer called Spectrom, placed first in the undergraduate division this year. Third place was awarded to a team of four from Columbia University, who developed a highly advanced orthopedic implant.

This is the third consecutive year that a Hopkins team has placed in this competition. Last year, a Hopkins team won first prize for its prototype titled PrestoPatch. This invention facilitates the use of electric shocks to treat patients that suffer from arrhythmia. In 2012, Hopkins won first place for FastStitch, a suturing tool that assists physicians when they are placing stitches in patients to prevent the puncturing of internal organs.

The contest, which was organized by Invent Now and the National Inventors Hall of Fame, promotes research and innovation through invention on both undergraduate and graduate levels.