What is DIABET? 

The Diabetes Initiative for Applied Biomedical Engineering Technologies (DIABET) is a diabetes-focused track within the doctoral level program in Applied Biomedical Engineering (ABE). This initiative has, as its central thesis, novel ways to educate engineering students in the areas of serious diabetic complications. These include cardiovascular disease, diabetic foot pathologies, and peripheral vascular complications. The curriculum goes beyond simply understanding the nature of these clinical issues; the courses give engineers tools to tackle these problems. DIABET also provides research opportunities in diabetes for research fellows in the Cleveland Clinic College of Medicine. 

DIABET provides a central focus for graduate level students, post-graduate trainees and research fellows who wish to apply the latest engineering concepts to the treatment and understanding of complications caused by diabetes. DIABET is an integrated education program that encompasses the continuum of biomedical engineering from “bench top” basic research through to commercialization and clinical practice.

A Multidisciplinary Approach to Developing Diabetes Related Technology

DIABET facilitates interactions between medical residents, research fellows and graduate engineering students through regular participation in journal clubs, research seminars and grand rounds.  The goal of fostering these interactions is to give graduate engineering students first hand experience of issues in the current management of diabetes, while at the same time giving clinicians access to engineers experienced in technologies fundamental to diabetes treatment. It is only through closely-knit teams of clinicians and engineers will significant advances occur in our understanding and treatment of diabetes and its complications.

Engineering curriculum

Courses available in this program include:

• Artificial Pancreas Design
• Vascular Grafts
• Pathophysiology of Diabetes
• Obesity and Related Disorders
• Micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)

In addition, applications of fundamental engineering principles to diabetes technologies are included in each of the core courses for doctoral students in the ABE program:

• Biomechanical Engineering
• Tissue Engineering
• Medical Devices and Biomaterials
• Medical Imaging

These courses provide the students with the understanding and skills needed for their research in developing new technologies for treating diabetes and reducing the effects of its complications. Diabetes-related research opportunities exist in the areas of:

• Metabolic modeling 
• Drug delivery systems utilizing MEMS 
• Biomechanical analyses of diabetic foot ulcers 
• Intravascular ultrasound evaluation of arteries and tissue engineered vascular grafts 

Students will participate in grand rounds and research seminars with physicians and medical residents.

Medical Resident Curriculum

Medical Residents in this program will have the opportunity to do research on technologies related to diabetes in the Biomedical Engineering Labs in the areas of advanced medical imaging, tissue engineering, sensor development or micro-electro-mechanical systems.

About the Partners

Cleveland State University (CSU) and The Cleveland Clinic Foundation (CCF) have successfully collaborated since 1998 on a doctoral program in Applied Biomedical Engineering. Cleveland State University is a comprehensive university with strength in applied research. The Applied Biomedical Engineering program (ABE) was established specifically to educate graduate level biomedical engineers for careers in industry or applied research. In this program, CSU’s strengths in applied engineering are combined with the excellent clinical capabilities found at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

At the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, the mission of Biomedical Engineering (BME) is to conduct patient-focused research, specifically the development of innovative diagnostic technologies and new therapeutic approaches to diseases that ensure better quality of life of patients. BME is located within the CCF's Lerner Research Institute and includes over 200 professional staff, engineers, technicians, support staff and students. This concentration makes the CCF's BME department one of the largest medical center-based programs in the country with an annual extramural research budget of over $15 million. The department has direct links to a large multidisciplinary group practice with medical and surgical expertise in cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. This relationship affords ready opportunities for translation of research into clinical practice.

For more information, please contact:

Dr. Joanne Belovich
Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering
Fenn College of Engineering
Cleveland State University
Ph: 216-687-3502
j.belovich@csuohio.edu

OR

Dr. Brian Davis
Department of Biomedical Engineering
Lerner Research Institute
The Cleveland Clinic Foundation
Ph: 216-444-1055 
davisb3@ccf.org

The DIABET program is supported by the National Institutes of Health.