Question

2. What products (at least three different) of biomedical engineering do you expect to encounter in the near future

Answer 1

EXPECTED PRODUCTS OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

1 Transition From “Replacement Medicine” to “Regenerative Medicine” by Solving Technological, Social, Regulatory, and Economic Issues:

Regenerative medicine has the ability to cure rather than treat disease. It will require developments in regulatory science to aid in the creation of tools, standards, approaches and policies for the assessment of safety, efficacy, and quality of novel therapies and medical products (e.g., cell-based therapies, regenerative medicine). It will also require solving technical challenges, such as managing differentiation of cells, and solving economic and logistical challenges, such as methods to deliver these therapies.

2. Improve the Treatment of Neurodegenerative Disorders in the Aging Population:

Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and other degenerative conditions are increasing as the population ages. Progress in understanding and treating these diseases can improve the quality of life for a large number of people. Management of Parkinson’s and epilepsy with neurostimulation has proven to be remarkably effective in some cases, but current techniques are not suitable for everyone, and other diseases, notably Alzheimer’s, remains essentially untreatable. Further neural engineering and targeted gene delivery approaches hold promise in curing these disorders.

3. Develop Technologies to Restore Motor Function to Individuals With Spinal Cord Injury:

A set of challenges at the interface between neuroscience and medical and biological engineering is spinal cord injury. Such injuries often impair bladder and bowel control as well as control of limbs. The goal is to allow individuals with spinal cord injury to live independent, productive lives by restoring critical functions. This can significantly reduce the lifetime costs of caring for those injured in accidents and veterans of military service, who are often young when the injuries occur. The approaches will include a combination of neural engineering, regenerative medicine, and new biomaterials.

4. Improve Medical Care by Developing Expanded Capabilities in Telemedicine:

Telemedicine has enormous potential benefits. It can be used for patient monitoring and diagnosis, health care consultation, patient education, and health care professional continuing education. This will not only increase access to health care for patients in remote or underserved areas, but will also facilitate electronic consultations and help to contain the cost of health care delivery.