About

Matthew R. Glucksberg is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University and the Director of the Center for Innovation in Global Health Technologies. His technical expertise includes tissue mechanics, microcirculation, and optical instrumentation. His laboratory has developed photonics-based instrumentation to measure pressure and flow in the circulation of the eye, as well as instruments to measure the response of pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells to their mechanical environment. Currently, he is involved in developing minimally invasive optical biosensors for monitoring glucose, lactate, and other measures of metabolic function. Dr. Glucksberg is a co-Founder of Northwestern’s Global Healthcare Technologies Program in Cape Town, South Africa, and co-director of an MS certificate program in Global and Ecological Health. He collaborates with the Center for Global Health at Feinberg to develop Biomedical Engineering degree programs at three universities in Nigeria. He is a member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineering, a Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society, and serves as a founding board member for the Northwestern Global Health Foundation.

Research topics

• Computer Science

Selected publications

• Improved Measurement of Intraocular Pressure

  2025-12-06

  article

  Glaucoma, a leading cause of irreversible blindness, is strongly linked to elevated intraocular pressure (IOP), for which Goldmann Applanation Tonometry (GAT) is the internationally accepted standard measurement. However, GAT's accuracy, which relies on flattening a specific corneal area, is known to be influenced by the thickness, curvature, and mechanical properties of the cornea. Our recent research, using in vitro tests on enucleated pig eyes, directly compared GAT measurements with internal pressure readings, revealing that GAT consistently underestimated the true IOP by up to 28 mmHg. This discrepancy was more pronounced in softer and thinner corneas, highlighting that corneal biomechanics significantly affect tonometry accuracy and are vital for precise glaucoma detection. To address this imprecision, we designed modified GAT to accurately measure force and displacement during applanation, which can then be integrated into a computational model of corneal mechanics for improved IOP assessment.

  PublisherDOI

• Feasibility of Leveraging Consumer Wearable Devices with Data Platform Integration for Patient Vital Monitoring in Low-Resource Settings

  International Journal of Telemedicine and Applications · 2024-02-08 · 6 citations

  articleOpen access

  Manual monitoring of vital signs, which often fails to capture the onset of deterioration, is the main monitoring modality in most Ghanaian hospitals due to the high cost and inadequate supply of patient bedside monitors. Consumer wearable devices (CWDs) are emerging, relatively low-cost technologies for continuous monitoring of physiological status; however, their validity has not been established in low-resource clinical settings. We aimed to (1) investigate the validity of the heart rate (HR) and oxygen saturation (SpO2) data from two widely used CWDs, the Fitbit Versa 2 and Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6, against gold standard bedside monitors in one Ghanaian hospital and (2) develop a web application to capture and display CWD data in a clinician-friendly way. A healthy volunteer simultaneously wore both CWDs and blood pressure cuffs to measure HR and SpO2. To test for concordance, we conducted the Bland-Altman and mean absolute percentage error analyses. We also developed a web application that retrieves and displays CWD data in near real time as text and graphical trends. Compared to gold standards (patient monitor and manual), the Fitbit Versa 2 had 96.87% and 96.67% measurement accuracies for HR, and the Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 had 94.24% and 93.21% measurement accuracies for HR. The Xiaomi Mi Smart Band 6 had 98.79% measurement accuracy for SpO2. The strong concordance between CWD and gold standards supports the potential implementation of these devices as a novel method of vital sign monitoring to replace manual monitoring, thus saving costs and improving patient outcomes. Further studies are needed for confirmation.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Computational assessment of airflow circuit in a double-acting solenoid-type non-invasive bi-level ventilator

  Research on Biomedical Engineering · 2023-12-12 · 1 citations

  articleSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• An archetypal model of a breathable air-circuit in an electro-pneumatic ventilator device

  Heliyon · 2022-05-01 · 5 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Mechanical ventilator is a machine that is mechanically designed to deliver breathable air in and out of the lungs to provide a breathing mechanism for a patient who is physically unable to breathe, it is an indispensable life-support device in critical care medicine and medical emergencies such as scenarios during the COVID-19 pandemic. This research presents a model design of the pneumatic circuit that is electronically controlled, by using computer-aided pneumatic rig over selected 5/3, 5/2, 3/2 solenoid gating valves, the performance of these valves must be investigated to ascertain the most appropriate valve to be used for the electro-pneumatic mechanical ventilator. An elaborate parametric investigation reported for volume-controlled ventilators illustrate the influences of key parameters on the dynamics of the ventilated respiratory system. This study presents the linearity of tidal volume, peak pressure and lung compliance for the parameters considered. However, the maximum pressure of the ventilation device increases slowly when the tidal volumes exceed 600 ml. In addition, influence of evacuation time of the ventilator predicted over high throughput in time regimes of 1 s; 1.2 s; 1.4 s; 1.6 s, and 1.8 s showed that the pressure platform in the pipe might not appear if the exhaust time of the ventilator is less than 1.6 s. The 5/2 solenoid valve was considered the best with consistent flowrate. The archetypal model of the pneumatic circuit developed in this research could find vital application in the design of patient-interfacing devices particularly in ventilators and neonatal incubator.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Suitability of Hood Geometry for Design of a PCM Neonate Incubator for Resource-Limited Clinical Applications

  Journal of Medical Systems · 2021-02-03 · 1 citations

  article
  PublisherDOI

• An Archetypal Model of a Breathable Air-Circuit in an Electro-Pneumatic Ventilator Device

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2021-01-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherDOI

• Deliverables from International Cooperation on an NIH-Funded Biomedical Engineering Project in Africa

  2020-09-10

  articleOpen access

  His technical expertise is in tissue mechanics, microcirculation, and optical instrumentation. His laboratory has developed image-based instrumentation to measure pressure and flow in the circulation of the eye, instruments to measure the response of pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells to their immediate mechanical environment, and is currently involved in developing minimally invasive optical biosensors for monitoring glucose, lactate, and other measures of metabolic function. He is a Co-founder of Northwestern's Global Healthcare Technologies Program in Cape Town South Africa and Co-director of an M.S. program in Global and Ecological Health.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Investigating Engineering Students’ Mathematical Modeling Abilities In Capstone Design

  2020-09-03 · 8 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Engineering capstone design is a culminating experience that is intended to provide an opportunity for students to apply their previous engineering knowledge to develop solutions to open-ended problems. Capstone design problems are often analytically complex, and their solutions integrate several disciplinary fundamentals, as well as more general design process knowledge. Often, the expectation is that a thorough or rigorous solution to a capstone level problem would include some type of computational or mathematical analysis appropriate to that discipline. However, engineering students often struggle in recognizing when and how disciplinary knowledge (e.g. mathematical analysis inherent in many engineering fundamentals) applies to their particular design solutions. This paper describes the strategy for and initial results of a study exploring how students use mathematical reasoning when developing design solutions. Specifically, we want to understand where students struggle in the development and implementation of a mathematical model. We conducted our study in a biomedical capstone (senior) design course. We presented students with a scenario based on a design problem in using phototherapy to treat jaundice, and asked specific questions relating to mathematical modeling in the solution to this problem.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Assessing Engineering Students’ Abilities at Generating and Using Mathematical Models in Capstone Design

  2020-09-03 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  In engineering capstone design, students need to use their previous knowledge to develop solutions to open-ended problems.A thorough solution to a capstone level problem often includes an appropriate computational or mathematical analysis.However, faculty are often disappointed in engineering students" ability to recognize when and how to apply mathematical analysis to their particular design solutions.This study assessed the capability of senior engineering students to apply mathematical modeling to design, and began the process of testing classroom interventions to rectify certain weaknesses.This research was constructed around a framework that identifies 6 steps in mathematical modeling 1 .Students were given a scenario and asked to assist a hypothetical design team by creating a mathematical model that could be used in making decisions about the design of a phototherapy device to treat neonatal jaundice.The problem was posed in four iterations over the academic term, with each iteration requiring students to perform different steps in the modeling process.In an earlier paper we explored how students interpreted the concept of "modeling," and how they decided what parameters were relevant.Most students had difficulty with these essential first steps of model creation, In subsequent iterations, students also demonstrated difficulty in representing a physical situation in equations, and in stating and justifying simplifications and assumptions.The last stages of modeling involve interpretation of the model, and here students proved to be better.They could, in general, relate graphical results from the mathematical model to experimental data obtained from a physical model.They were also able to use the model outputs to make design decisions, or explain why the existing model was inadequate for this purpose.In the second year of the study, there was more instruction and review of students" performance after they worked on each stage of the problem.This improved performance.In the first year only 16% of students were able to generate equations (even incorrect ones), even though an equation for one element of the system had been given in class.In the second year this number increased to 29%.When students were asked to state assumptions they would use to simplify the system they planned to model, only 35% of students in the first year of the study stated assumptions that were relevant, but this number increased to 80% in the second year.We conclude that even though students are exposed to certain aspects of modeling in earlier engineering courses, they may not recognize how to perform some of the required steps in an open-ended situation such as design.This prevents or constrains their use of modeling in this important context.Specific instruction in the steps of model creation can improve students" abilities.More work remains to optimize this instruction, and to determine whether the improvement resulting from instruction transfers from the scenario we created to the students" actual design projects.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Characterizing Computational Adaptive Expertise

  2020 · 20 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Computer Science
  • Computer Science

  Our research is exploring the role that computational and analytical abilities play in innovation, in the context of engineering design education. We are applying the learning framework of adaptive expertise to focus our work and guide the research. The model of adaptive expertise has been presented as a way of thinking about how to prepare learners to flexibly respond to new learning situations, which is precisely what students are expected to do in the context of developing design solutions. We focus on "computational adaptive expertise," which we abbreviate CADEX, since a major portion of an engineering curriculum focuses on developing analytical and computational knowledge. Yet, students often struggle with applying or transferring computational knowledge in the context of design. The current paper presents an overview of adaptive expertise and relates this concept specifically to engineering design education. In addition, the paper presents an overview of the research plan we are presently using to study CADEX in the context of a senior level biomedical engineering design course.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Enhancing Biomedical Engineering Senior Design at Northwestern University

  NIH · $108k · 2011–2017

• NIH Grant R01EY009714

  NIH · $928k · 2001

• NIH Grant R01EY013002

  NIH · $782k · 2004

Frequent coauthors

• Robert A. Linsenmeier

  Northwestern University

  24 shared

• Ann McKenna

  University of Iowa

  18 shared

• Richard P. Van Duyne

  16 shared

• James B. Grotberg

  12 shared

• Olga Lyandres

  12 shared

• J. B. Grotberg

  University of Michigan–Ann Arbor

  10 shared

• Hongyu Chen

  Shanghai University

  9 shared

• Jonathan B. Lamano

  Stanford University

  9 shared

Labs

• Center for Innovation in Global Health TechnologiesPI

Awards & honors

• Member of the College of Fellows of the American Institute o…
• Fellow of the Biomedical Engineering Society
• Founding board member for the Northwestern Global Health Fou…