The Neuroradiology Section of the Vall d'Hebron University Hospital collaborates with the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF) to host up to three students of the Biomedical Engineering Degree every year to develop their Final Degree Project in a high-level clinical and research environment. This year, the project developed entirely in the section by the student Helena Sánchez Ulloa, entitled "Deep learning segmentation for morphological assessment of optic nerve integrity in optic neuritis", has been nominated for the 2025 National Award for the best TFGs in Biomedical Engineering.

The work proposes a quantitative assessment of the integrity of the optic nerve from magnetic resonance images acquired in clinical practice. To make this assessment, a tool based on artificial intelligence has been implemented to speed up the segmentation of the optic nerve. The developed code is freely accessible and is available at this link.

The study was co-directed by Dr. Deborah Pareto Onghena, from the Institute of Diagnostic Imaging (IDI) and the Clinical Neuroimmunology group of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), and Dr. Jaume Sastre Garriga, member of the Multiple Sclerosis Centre of Catalonia (Cemcat), Neurology Service of Vall d'Hebron Hospital and the Clinical Neuroimmunology group of Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), and tutored by Professor Dr. Gemma Piella, from the Department of Information and Communication Technologies of the UPF.

Her nomination means that she will represent UPF in the national competition held annually at the Congress of the Spanish Society of Biomedical Engineering (CASEIB), which this year will take place in Zaragoza, from 19 to 21 November 2025.

Vall d'Hebron's collaboration with UPF

The Neuroradiology Section is directed by Dr. Àlex Rovira Cañellas and is integrated in the Radiology Service (Diagnostic Imaging Institute) at Vall d'Hebron Hospital. This collaboration with the UPF, which has also involved the participation of Cemcat and the Neuroradiology group of the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), has already led, on previous occasions, to works published in prestigious scientific journals in fields such as the neurovascular coupling in migraine o la detection of lesions in the optic nerve with magnetic resonance.

This nomination highlights the collaborative work between clinical services and the university, as well as the commitment of the Neuroradiology Section, the Institute of Diagnostic Imaging, Cemcat and VHIR to the training of young talent and translational research.