PhD Position in Modeling Menopause-Related Heart Rhythm Disorders at Erasmus MC

PhD Position in Modeling Menopause-Related Heart Rhythm Disorders

Erasmus MC

Rotterdam, South Holland, Netherlands

3,200 – 4,100 / month

On-Site

Entry

Starts on October 1, 2026

posted 2 days ago

Vacancy Summary

Join us in a groundbreaking PhD project focused on the electrical and structural changes in the heart during menopause. You will develop advanced computational models using unique datasets to uncover mechanisms that increase the risk of heart rhythm disorders in women.

Required skills

Discovery

Collective Labor Agreement

Enthusiasm

Insurance

modeling

Clinical Research

Changes

Fitness

Optimization

Algorithms

Digital Health

Electrical

Communication Skills

Design

Data Collection

Data Analysis

numerical methods

Mathematics

Dynamical Systems

Algorithm Development

Contact

Access

Bicycle

Detection

digital twins

Supervision

ECG

Science

Make

Multidisciplinary Collaboration

Clear

Electrophysiology

Clinical Data

mapping

Node

Python Programming

Simulations

Pipelines

Benefits

Ability to work in a multidisciplinary team

MOST

Cardiac Surgery

Move

Time

Conduct

LEAD

Menopause induces significant electrical and structural changes in the heart, yet the underlying mechanisms and the reasons for the increased risk of heart rhythm disorders in women remain largely unexplored. In this PhD project, you will be pivotal in uncovering these mechanisms by developing advanced, multi-scale computational models of atrial electrophysiology.

About the Company

You will conduct your research within the Translational Electrophysiology Unit of the Department of Cardiology at Erasmus MC, a leading academic medical center in the Netherlands. The group is renowned for its work in cardiac electrophysiology and collaborates closely with the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery and various research groups at TU Delft.

The Role

You will work with one of the most comprehensive datasets available globally: high-resolution intra-operative electrical mapping data recorded directly from human atria during cardiac surgery, combined with ECG, PPG, hormone profiles, and continuous vital signs. All data is collected within Erasmus MC, providing you with direct access to clinicians, engineers, and the surgical team. This means you will build models grounded in rich, real-world physiology rather than relying on synthetic or incomplete datasets.

Your task will involve transforming these multimodal datasets into patient-specific "digital twins" that simulate the evolution of atrial electrophysiology across the menopausal transition. You will design and calibrate mechanistic models at the cellular, tissue, and organ scales; develop numerical methods and optimization pipelines; and run large-scale simulations to reconstruct remodeling trajectories and identify critical "breaking points" that lead to arrhythmias such as sinus node dysfunction and atrial fibrillation. The insights and model outputs you generate will directly inform the women-specific arrhythmia detection algorithms developed by our industrial partner, ensuring a clear translational pathway toward real-world digital health solutions.

Beyond modeling, you will contribute to algorithm development for arrhythmia prediction and collaborate closely with clinical researchers during patient recruitment and data collection. This position is perfect for someone who enjoys combining computational modeling, physiology, and real clinical data, making a scientific impact that is both academically significant and clinically meaningful.

About Erasmus MC

Erasmus MC

We are Erasmus MC. Our roots lie in Rotterdam, a city and port of international standing. We are the most innovative university medical center in the Netherlands and one of the world’s leading centers of scientific research. We are committed to achieving a healthy population and pursuing excellence in healthcare through research and teaching. Day in, day out, our staff, volunteers and students work with passion and dedication to achieve everything we stand for: safe, first-rate healthcare for patients with complex issues, unusual and rare conditions or acute needs. But we also stand for top-quality teaching that attracts ambitious, inquisitive and talented students and seeks to answer the healthcare questions of tomorrow. And we stand for world-class scientific research that bolsters our understanding of diseases and disorders and helps to predict, treat and prevent them. We do our work based on our basic principles, the core values of Erasmus MC, 'responsible', 'connecting' and 'enterprising'. We believe that we provide the best care, research and education if we are responsible, binding and enterprising.

Locations

Rotterdam, NL

Website

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