Dr. Sacks’ research interests include modeling and simulation of the function of the heart and its valves using a multiscale modeling at the cellular, tissue, and organ levels. His work addresses both fundamental questions and clinical applications utilizing state-of-art computational methods and imaging technologies. In particular, his work focusses on developing patient-specific, simulation-based approaches for the understanding and treatment of heart and heart valve diseases. His research is based on multi-scale modeling, quantification, and simulation of the biophysical behavior of the constituent cells and tissues and translation to the organ level in health, disease, and treatment. For example, he has developed novel non-invasive methods to quantify pre- and post-surgical state of the mitral valve from pre-surgical clinical images. He has determined the how local stress environments of heart valve interstitial cells alter their biosynthetic responses in the context of altered heart and valvular organ-level responses. His research also includes developing novel cardiac models to simulate growth and remodeling of the myocardium in pulmonary hypertension, the first full 3D approach for left ventricular myocardium mechanical behavior. Dr. Sacks is also active in modeling replacement heart valve materials and in understanding the in-vivo remodeling processes. Recent work has involved the use of neural network models for the simulation of the heart and heart valves.