James Watt School of Engineering

Dr Sathish Kumar Marimuthu

  • Research Associate (Biomedical Engineering)

email: SathishKumar.Marimuthu@glasgow.ac.uk
pronouns: He/him/his

Level 3, Pearce Lodge, University Avenue, University of Glasgow, Glasgow City, Scotland, United Kingdom, G12 8QQ

Import to contacts

Biography

I am a Postdoctoral Research Associate (2025–2029) at the University of Glasgow, working under the guidance of Dr Sean McGinty in the James Watt School of Engineering and Professor Nicholas Hill in the School of Mathematics & Statistics. My research focuses on developing computational modelling approaches to support cardiovascular and neurosurgical planning, predict immediate and long-term outcomes following intervention, and improve implant design to enhance patient outcomes and quality of life. I am particularly interested in the mathematical and computational modelling of surgery-induced deformation, vascular adaptation, and growth and remodelling, as well as the mechanical response of biological tissues such as blood vessels and the brain.

My long-term research goal is to develop next-generation surgical planning and navigation systems by integrating patient-specific mechanical modelling with augmented and virtual reality technologies for the treatment of cardiovascular and neurological diseases.

Previously, I was an industry-sponsored PhD researcher (2020–2024) at the SofTMech Centre, University of Glasgow, jointly funded by the EPSRC and Terumo Aortic Ltd, UK. My PhD research, conducted in collaboration with Terumo Aortic, focused on developing computational tools for patient-specific pre-surgical planning of endovascular aortic repair, with particular emphasis on modelling stent-graft deployment and device–vessel interaction. As part of this work, I also collaborated closely with Professor Francesco Migliavacca and Dr Giulia Luraghi at Politecnico di Milano, Italy.

Building on this research, I secured funding through the Glasgow Knowledge Exchange Fund (GKEF) in collaboration with Terumo Aortic to validate and transfer a computational framework for modelling vascular adaptation following stent-graft deployment in abdominal aortic aneurysms. The project aims to translate the framework towards industrial R&D applications and, in the longer term, patient-specific pre-surgical planning. Our group had previously secured an EPSRC Impact Acceleration Account (IAA) award with Terumo Aortic to further develop findings from my PhD into a validated framework for understanding stent deployment and device–vessel interaction. To broaden my experience in cardiovascular biomechanics, I subsequently joined the EPSRC Centre for Future PCI Planning as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the James Watt School of Engineering, while continuing to contribute to the aortic modelling and knowledge-exchange activities.

My earlier research at IIT Madras focused on computational biomechanics and immersive technologies for surgical planning. My master’s thesis, supervised by Professor R. Krishnakumar, involved investigating fluid–structure interaction during craniotomy and developing a virtual reality-based platform for pre-surgical planning and post-operative assessment in cardiothoracic surgery. This work was carried out in collaboration with Dr Komarakshi Balakrishnan, a cardiothoracic surgeon, with the aim of supporting the planning and assessment of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation.

The resulting virtual reality platform was used by surgeons to support the pre-operative planning of LVAD implantation in paediatric patients with cardiomyopathy and to assess post-operative outcomes by evaluating LVAD inflow cannula orientation using segmented geometries reconstructed from follow-up imaging. The work received national recognition following the successful treatment of a paediatric patient whose case had previously been considered extremely challenging by multiple international centres. India’s former Education Minister recognised the work publicly.

Research interests

My current research focuses on modelling in-stent restenosis following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). I am investigating how the mechanical environment created by stent deployment influences subsequent vascular adaptation and neo-intimal growth. This work combines growth and remodelling (G&R) theories, including volumetric/kinematic growth models and homogenised constrained mixture theory (CMT), with fluid–structure interaction (FSI) and damage mechanics. I am also interested in incorporating drug-eluting stents into these models to investigate the relationship between local drug delivery, vascular mechanics and the extent of neo-intimal growth.

My PhD research focused on the computational modelling and optimisation of stent-grafts for the treatment of aortic aneurysms and dissections, with particular emphasis on device–vessel interaction, tear propagation and long-term vascular adaptation following endovascular repair. I developed computational approaches to investigate and optimise stent-graft designs with the aim of reducing post-operative complications. This work involved advanced techniques in nonlinear continuum mechanics, finite element modelling and the extended finite element method (XFEM). I also developed user-defined material subroutines for anisotropic hyperelastic constitutive models used in soft-tissue mechanics.

Building on my PhD research, I am currently using longitudinal pre- and post-operative CT imaging from abdominal aortic aneurysm patients to develop and validate multiscale growth and remodelling models of vascular adaptation following stent-graft implantation. The aim is to understand how the interaction between the implanted device and the arterial wall drives long-term changes in vessel geometry and, ultimately, to support improved device design and patient-specific treatment planning.

Alongside computational biomechanics, I have a strong interest in the use of Mixed Reality, including Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR), for surgical training, pre-surgical planning and intra-operative navigation. My longer-term goal is to integrate patient-specific biomechanical models with immersive technologies to develop more predictive and interactive tools for cardiovascular and neurological interventions.

Publications

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Grants

• EPSRC (2026-2027), Glasgow Knowledge Exchange Fund (GKEF) & TerumoAortic Grant: £50,000 (Principal Investigator)

• EPSRC Vacation Internship (July 2026 - September 2026): Paid UG Summer Internship Project

• EPSRC (2025-2026), Impact Acceleration Accounts (IAA) & TerumoAortic Grant: £71,939 (Co-Investigator)

• EPSRC (2020-2024), SofTMech & TerumoAortic.Inc PhD Scholarship. EP/S030875/1

• Half-Time Research Assistant Fellowship (HTRA), IIT Madras (2017-2020)

Supervision

• EPSRC Vacation Internship (July 2026 - September 2026) - Emma Fraser (BSc (Hons) Physics)

Teaching

University of Glasgow, UK

Teaching Contribution (Lectures), James Watt School of Engineering, Nov 2025

  • Engineering Mathematics 1 ENG1063

Delivered lectures to 1st-year undergraduate cohort, covering core topics in Matrix Algebra, Sequences, Series and Limit.

 

Teaching Assistant, James Watt School of Engineering, May 2022 - Aug 2024

Taught solid mechanics problems to UG, MEng and MS students. Helped them in simulating elastic and plastic behaviour in ABAQUS. Assisted them in simulating a plate with a hole problem and 3D analysis of a bearing bracket design in ABAQUS.

 

Demonstrator, James Watt School of Engineering, May 2022 - Aug 2024

  • Materials - 1 & 2 labs

Helped students perform tensile tests, impact tests, and heat treatment processes to understand the effect of the annealing process of ferrous alloys and understand carbon’s effect on steel’s mechanical properties. Also assisted them in conducting tests on copper and polymers.

Assisted students in building miniature trebuchet machines using laser-cut materials.

 

Marker, School of Mathematics and Statistics & James Watt School of Engineering, May 2022 - Aug 2024

Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, India                                                                                                                July 2017 - March 

Teaching assistant, Department of Engineering Design, 2017 - 2020