Biomedical Engineering

Biomedical Engineering covers recent advances in the growing field of biomedical technology, instrumentation, and administration. Contributions focus on theoretical and practical problems associated with:

• the development of medical technology;

• the introduction of new engineering methods into public health;
  

• hospitals and patient care;
  

• the improvement of diagnosis and therapy;
  

• biomedical information storage and retrieval.
  
  

Much of the work in biomedical engineering consists of research and development, spanning a broad array of subfields (see below). Prominent biomedical engineering applications include the development of biocompatible prostheses, various diagnostic and therapeutic medical devices ranging from clinical equipment to micro-implants, common imaging equipment such as MRIs and EEGs, biotechnologies such as regenerative tissue growth, and pharmaceutical drugs & biopharmaceuticals.

Sub disciplines within biomedical engineering

Biomedical engineering is a highly interdisciplinary field, influenced by (and overlapping with) various other engineering and medical fields. This often happens with newer disciplines, as they gradually emerge in their own right after evolving from special applications of extant disciplines. Due to this diversity, it is typical for a biomedical engineer to focus on a particular subfield or group of related subfields. There are many different taxonomic breakdowns within BME, as well as varying views about how best to organize them and manage any internal overlap; the main U.S. organization devoted to BME divides the major specialty areas as follows

• Bioinstrumentation


• Biomaterials


• Biomechanics


• Cellular, Tissue, and Genetic Engineering


• Clinical Engineering


• Medical Imaging


• Orthopaedic Bioengineering


• Rehabilitation Engineering


• Systems Physiology

Sometimes, disciplines within BME are classified by their association(s) with other, more established engineering fields, which can include:

• Chemical engineering - often associated with biochemical, cellular, molecular and tissue engineering, biomaterials, and biotransport.


• Electrical engineering - often associated with bioelectrical and neural engineering, bioinstrumentation, biomedical imaging, and medical devices. This also tends to encompass Optics and Optical engineering - biomedical optics, imaging and related medical devices.


• Mechanical engineering - often associated with biomechanics, biotransport, medical devices, and modeling of biological systems.