In June, the summer course “Emerging Trends in Ultrasound Applications” was held at Campus Gandia of the Universitat Politècnica de València, part of the WAVES International Master’s Degree, this course attracted students from around the globe to pursue specialized studies in the field of acoustics.
The course was organized by Francisco Camarena, a research professor at Campus Gandia, and was taught by:
Roberto Giacchetta, director of Dasel, a CSIC spin-off company with over 20 years of experience in developing electronics for non-destructive ultrasonic inspection systems.
Noé Jiménez, a CSIC researcher, is the author of six patents in the field of ultrasound therapy and imaging (lithotripsy, holography, hyperthermia, ablation, elastography) and the founder of two spin-off companies dedicated to bringing these technologies to market.
Professor Gail Ter Haar, from the Institute of Cancer Research in London, UK, one of the pioneers in the use of High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound (HIFU) technology for ablation therapy since the 1970s.
Gail Ter Haar talking about ultrasonic therapy
Enrique González-Mateo, PhD candidate at the Institute of Instrumentation for Molecular Imaging (i3M), whose thesis focuses on developing new elastographic imaging techniques to quantify tissue hardness, aiming to enhance medical diagnosis..
Researchers José Pineda-Pardo and Javier Blesa, from the Comprehensive Neuroscience Center of Madrid Hospitals, who presented the results of the latest clinical trials on ultrasound therapy for treating Essential Tremor and Parkinson’s disease.
José Pineda-Pardo describing his clinical experiments for the treatment of Parkinson’s
Sergio Jiménez-Gambín, a researcher at Columbia University (NYC, USA), who presented the initial results from clinical trials using ultrasound for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Laia Miró, a professor at the University of Alicante, presented findings on the application of ultrasound technology in the construction industry.
José Vicente García, a researcher at the Institute of Food Engineering-FoodUPV, demonstrated various applications of ultrasound waves in the food industry. Additionally, researchers from the “Leonardo Torres Quevedo” Institute of Physical and Information Technologies (ITEFI, CSIC) contributed to the presentation.
Jorge Camacho, who presented the technology developed by his team for ultrasound inspection of the lungs.
Tomás Gómez, international leader in developing ultrasonic systems capable of operating without direct contact with the medium under study.
Xose Luís Dean Ben, a researcher at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Zurich, who presented advancements in the mixed imaging technique known as Optoacoustics. This method enables selective visualization of tissues containing specific molecules.
Four of the course speakers are graduates of Campus Gandia: Noé Jiménez, who holds degrees in Telecommunications, Sound, and Image Engineering and is currently a Senior Scientist at CSIC; Sergio Jiménez and Enrique González, both Master’s graduates in Acoustic Engineering, now researchers at Columbia University and PhD candidates at i3M, respectively; and Ricardo García, who graduated in Audiovisual Communication and currently oversees marketing and communication at Brio Ultrasonics.
Noé Jiménez explaining the characteristics of the ultrasound image (left) | Enrique González-Mateo in a demonstration of the ultrasound and therapy laboratory (center) | Sergio Jiménez-Gambín starting his talk on the ultrasound treatment of Alzheimer’s (right)
In addition, they visited the facilities of Brio Ultrasonics in Paterna, where Alejandro Cubel and Ricardo García guided them through the entire manufacturing process of ultrasonic cleaning machines, from initial design to final assembly. They also had the opportunity to explore firsthand the unique characteristics of this technology, as well as the latest developments and applications that the company is pioneering.
Ricardo García, from Brio Ultrasonics, explaining how ultrasonic industrial cleaning technology works
The Valencian Community is at the forefront of ultrasound technology, excelling in both industrial applications and R&D conducted in research centers. This is evidenced by the results presented in this summer course at Campus Gandia.
