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This page is developed to have an understanding of the current opinion in modeling and simulation. In long term, the results of this survey may help us to develop white papers identifying the social and scientific challenges in multiscale modeling and simulation and required actions to promote simulation-based medicine. Please contribute by adding your comments below the questions. Add any other questions and items that you see relevant.
STATE-OF-THE-ART
Please provide an example of a modeling and simulation study in your discipline (multiscale or not) that significantly changed clinical decision making process. Please include the citation and your reasoning.
Please provide an example of a modeling and simulation study in your discipline (multiscale or not) that significantly changed the understanding of biological phenomena. Please include the citation and your reasoning.
Please provide an example of a multiscale modeling and simulation study in your discipline that significantly portrayed the importance of coupling between spatial and/or temporal scales.
DEVELOPMENT
What kind of data do you need to develop your models?
geometries (bone, cartilage, ligaments, menisci), insertion sites (muscle, ligaments), material properties (ligaments, cartilage, bone, muscle) properties that are needed depend on model used to represente tissue i.e. 1-D spring model of ligaments would spring constnat and zero-strain reference legnth of each bundle being represented, boundary conditions (for a musculoskeletal model would need muscle activations, segment motion, GRF), mass properties (could be derivied from geometries and densities)
Can you find data for development? If yes, from where? If no, how will you collect data?
geometries can be obtained from MRI, tissue properties are usually collected on cadavers (cadavers are typically older subjects), insertion sites can come from MRI and cadavers. It is difficult to obtain all imformation required for a subject specific model. Usually information is pulled from many sources i.e. literature and some subject specific measurements. Visual Human project has goemetries of a male and female subject. ASME Grand Challenge has gait data and measurements from an instrumented knee prosthetic, other data is scattered thorughout individual projects on SimTK
When you are involved in a modeling and simulation study, what is your estimate of the relative labor for a) data collection b) model development c) simulation d) preparation of publications e) preparation for dissemination and its conduct?
a) data collection 25% b) model development 40% c) simulation 5% d) preparation of publications 15% e) dissemenation 15%
REVIEW
What are the difficulties you encounter when someone reviews your grant applications including multiscale modeling?
Multiscale modeling encompasses a broad spectrum of data collection and modeling methods and requires technical expertise in many areas along with expertise in the clinical applications and measurement. It is difficult to properly address and include everything that needs to be accomplished for a multiscale project in the proposal page limitations. Reviewers may have expertise in only one small area of the many areas covered in the proposal, but lock in to the one area they are familiar with.
What are the difficulties you encounter when someone reviews your journal submissions including multiscale modeling?
It can be difficult to publish articles that just focus on the science, i.e. improving an algorithm or method. As soon as the word biomedical is used, many reviewers expect that the work address a specific clinical question.