{"id":2100,"date":"2024-08-25T19:31:20","date_gmt":"2024-08-25T19:31:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/labs.cs.queensu.ca\/perklab\/?post_type=qsc_member&p=2100"},"modified":"2024-08-25T19:31:21","modified_gmt":"2024-08-25T19:31:21","slug":"laura-connolly","status":"publish","type":"qsc_member","link":"https:\/\/labs.cs.queensu.ca\/perklab\/members\/laura-connolly\/","title":{"rendered":"Laura\u00a0Connolly"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Laura\u00a0Connolly<\/h1><\/div>\n\t\t
PhD Student<\/div>\n\t\t
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (Smith Engineering)<\/div>\n\t\t
Queen’s University<\/div>\n\t\t
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laura.connolly@queensu.ca<\/a><\/div>\n\t\t\t
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Biography<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Laura Connolly is a Ph.D. Candidate in Electrical Engineering at Queen\u2019s University in Kingston, ON, Canada. She is mentored by Dr. Gabor Fichtinger, Dr. Parvin Mousavi and Dr. Russell H. Taylor. She has recently completed her second visiting studentship at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD, USA in the Laboratory for Computational Sensing and Robotics (LCSR).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Laura began researching computer-integrated surgery in 2018 as an undergraduate researcher before entering her graduate studies in 2020. Her research is now primarily focused on the application of robotics and image guidance for margin detection in breast-conserving surgery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publications<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Elkind, Emese; Tun, Aung Tin; Radcliffe, Olivia; Connolly, Laura; Davison, Colleen; Purkey, Eva; Mousavi, Parvin; Fichtinger, Gabor; Thornton, Kanchana<\/p>

Developing low-cost 3D-printed prosthetics with a functional wrist for patients along the Thai-Myanmar border<\/a> Conference<\/span> <\/p>

INOVAIT Image-Guided Therapy (IGT) x Imaging Network Ontario (ImNO), <\/span>2025<\/span>.<\/p>

Abstract<\/a><\/span> | Links<\/a><\/span> | BibTeX<\/a><\/span><\/p>

@conference{Elkind2025b,
\r\ntitle = {Developing low-cost 3D-printed prosthetics with a functional wrist for patients along the Thai-Myanmar border},
\r\nauthor = {Emese Elkind and Aung Tin Tun and Olivia Radcliffe and Laura Connolly and Colleen Davison and Eva Purkey and Parvin Mousavi and Gabor Fichtinger and Kanchana Thornton 
\r\n},
\r\nurl = {https:\/\/labs.cs.queensu.ca\/perklab\/eelkind_imno2025_poster_wrist\/},
\r\nyear  = {2025},
\r\ndate = {2025-03-05},
\r\nurldate = {2025-03-05},
\r\npublisher = {INOVAIT Image-Guided Therapy (IGT) x Imaging Network Ontario (ImNO)},
\r\nabstract = {INTRODUCTION: Inadequacies in the Burmese healthcare system, heightened by the 2021 military coup and related civil war in Myanmar and the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed to an influx of refugees to Thailand to seek medical aid. An estimated 1.5 million Myanmar nationals entered Thailand since January 2023 [5]. Without immigration status, these refugees are unable to receive healthcare. Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF) is a nonprofit based in Mae Sot, Tak, Thailand that focuses on funding underserved Burmese communities\u2019 medical treatment and providing support services, including accessible prosthetics for refugees who have experienced limb loss [1]. Prosthetics in lower-income countries are usually passive, meaning they lack mechanisms to restore critical limb functions such as gripping, rotation, or complex hand movements. Therefore, patients cannot fully perform their daily functions, impacting their abilities to work and affecting family caretakers. BCMF aims to make prosthetics that work best in low-resource settings using open-source designs, which only allow for fixed hand positions. The usage of prosthetic arms depends heavily on their functionality and comfort. Patients are more likely to consistently use prosthetics if it aids them in returning to normalcy. In this study, we present a design for an interchangeable and functional prosthetic wrist that enables critical hand motions such as rotation.
\r\nMETHODS: BCMF currently provides custom-fitted, low-cost, 3D-printed prostheses that are found on Thingiverse, a public library of 3D designs.  One such design is the Kwawu Arm 2.0 [2], which can be adjusted with OpenSCAD [4], a software for modifying 3D CAD models to fit the recipient's measurements. To maintain BCMF\u2019s workflow, the interchangeable wrist model was created using the 3D design software, Autodesk Fusion 360, and designs from open sourced Quick-Connect Wrist designs found on Thingiverse [3]. The wrist was merged onto the Kwawu Arm, printed, assembled, and tested for durability and comfort both with and without patients. This is an iterative process where patient feedback ensures the prosthetics cater to the diverse needs of the recipients. 
\r\nRESULTS: Since the launch of the prosthetics project in 2019, BCMF has provided 3D-printed prosthetics to 76 patients. The interchangeable hand provides a solution to many patients' everyday activities and can rotate the hand 360 degrees (Fig.2) and has been tested on and used by one patient thus far (Fig.1). 
\r\nCONCLUSIONS: The BCMF prosthetics project provides a low-cost solution to healthcare challenges in the context of poly-crisis experienced in Myanmar, enhancing the resilience and adaptability of affected refugee communities. The collaboration between BCMF and Queen\u2019s University demonstrates the potential for future partnerships between educational institutions and NGOs to address health care access disparities. Future work includes continuing to fill the gap between open-sourced models and patient-specific needs to refine the 3D-printing workflow by continuing to create customizable, generalized designs. We also plan to test the interchangeable wrist with more patients and develop body-powered prosthetic designs to support more critical movements.
\r\nREFERENCES: [1]Burma Children Medical Fund - Mae Sot, Thailand. BCMF | Burma Children Medical Fund - Mae Sot, Thailand - Operating to give people a future. (n.d.). https:\/\/burmachildren.com\/ [2]Buchanan, J. (2018, March 27). Kwawu Arm 2.0 - Prosthetic - socket version. Thingiverse. https:\/\/www.thingiverse.com\/thing:2841281 [3]NIOP. (2022, February 9). NIOP Q-C V1 quick-connect wrist. Thingiverse. http:\/\/www.thingiverse.com\/thing:5238794 [4]OpenSCAD. The Programmers Solid 3D CAD Modeller. (n.d.). https:\/\/openscad.org\/ [5]UN. Overview of Myanmar nationals in Thailand. IOM UN migration. https:\/\/thailand.iom.int\/sites\/g\/files\/tmzbdl1371\/files\/documents\/2024-10\/overview-of-myanmar-nationals-in-thailand-october-24.pdf 
\r\n},
\r\nkeywords = {},
\r\npubstate = {published},
\r\ntppubtype = {conference}
\r\n}
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INTRODUCTION: Inadequacies in the Burmese healthcare system, heightened by the 2021 military coup and related civil war in Myanmar and the COVID-19 pandemic, have contributed to an influx of refugees to Thailand to seek medical aid. An estimated 1.5 million Myanmar nationals entered Thailand since January 2023 [5]. Without immigration status, these refugees are unable to receive healthcare. Burma Children Medical Fund (BCMF) is a nonprofit based in Mae Sot, Tak, Thailand that focuses on funding underserved Burmese communities\u2019 medical treatment and providing support services, including accessible prosthetics for refugees who have experienced limb loss [1]. Prosthetics in lower-income countries are usually passive, meaning they lack mechanisms to restore critical limb functions such as gripping, rotation, or complex hand movements. Therefore, patients cannot fully perform their daily functions, impacting their abilities to work and affecting family caretakers. BCMF aims to make prosthetics that work best in low-resource settings using open-source designs, which only allow for fixed hand positions. The usage of prosthetic arms depends heavily on their functionality and comfort. Patients are more likely to consistently use prosthetics if it aids them in returning to normalcy. In this study, we present a design for an interchangeable and functional prosthetic wrist that enables critical hand motions such as rotation.
\r\nMETHODS: BCMF currently provides custom-fitted, low-cost, 3D-printed prostheses that are found on Thingiverse, a public library of 3D designs.  One such design is the Kwawu Arm 2.0 [2], which can be adjusted with OpenSCAD [4], a software for modifying 3D CAD models to fit the recipient's measurements. To maintain BCMF\u2019s workflow, the interchangeable wrist model was created using the 3D design software, Autodesk Fusion 360, and designs from open sourced Quick-Connect Wrist designs found on Thingiverse [3]. The wrist was merged onto the Kwawu Arm, printed, assembled, and tested for durability and comfort both with and without patients. This is an iterative process where patient feedback ensures the prosthetics cater to the diverse needs of the recipients. 
\r\nRESULTS: Since the launch of the prosthetics project in 2019, BCMF has provided 3D-printed prosthetics to 76 patients. The interchangeable hand provides a solution to many patients' everyday activities and can rotate the hand 360 degrees (Fig.2) and has been tested on and used by one patient thus far (Fig.1). 
\r\nCONCLUSIONS: The BCMF prosthetics project provides a low-cost solution to healthcare challenges in the context of poly-crisis experienced in Myanmar, enhancing the resilience and adaptability of affected refugee communities. The collaboration between BCMF and Queen\u2019s University demonstrates the potential for future partnerships between educational institutions and NGOs to address health care access disparities. Future work includes continuing to fill the gap between open-sourced models and patient-specific needs to refine the 3D-printing workflow by continuing to create customizable, generalized designs. We also plan to test the interchangeable wrist with more patients and develop body-powered prosthetic designs to support more critical movements.
\r\nREFERENCES: [1]Burma Children Medical Fund - Mae Sot, Thailand. BCMF | Burma Children Medical Fund - Mae Sot, Thailand - Operating to give people a future. (n.d.). https:\/\/burmachildren.com\/ [2]Buchanan, J. (2018, March 27). Kwawu Arm 2.0 - Prosthetic - socket version. Thingiverse. https:\/\/www.thingiverse.com\/thing:2841281 [3]NIOP. (2022, February 9). NIOP Q-C V1 quick-connect wrist. Thingiverse. http:\/\/www.thingiverse.com\/thing:5238794 [4]OpenSCAD. The Programmers Solid 3D CAD Modeller. (n.d.). https:\/\/openscad.org\/ [5]UN. Overview of Myanmar nationals in Thailand. IOM UN migration. https:\/\/thailand.iom.int\/sites\/g\/files\/tmzbdl1371\/files\/documents\/2024-10\/overview-of-myanmar-nationals-in-thailand-october-24.pdf 
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