VOLUMETRIC HEART MODELING AND ANALYSIS: Using magnetically tagged data to better understand the mechanical function of normal and abnormal hearts.

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the Western world and consequently the study of normal and pathological heart behavior is an active research area. In particular, the study of the shape and motion of the heart is important because many heart diseases are strongly correlated to these two factors. The human heart is composed of two separate pumps: a right heart that pumps the blood through the lungs and a left heart that pumps the blood through the peripheral organs. In turn, each of these "hearts" is a two-chamber pump composed of an atrium and a ventricle. Special mechanisms in the heart provide cardiac rhythm and transmit action potentials throughout the heart muscle to cause the heart's rhythmic relaxation (diastole) and contraction (systole).