How Technology and Bioengineering have changed the face of healthcare

Gone are the days when doctors had to cut and prod in order to find the ultimate cause of someone's medical problem. Now with all the advances in technology, especially in the area of nuclear imaging, a simple scan can most often get to the root of the problem without the need for what was once a common practice, exploratory surgery.

In fact, it wasn’t all that long ago in human history when x-rays were state-of-the-art technology and that is as far as it went in diagnosing what went on under the skin without opening a patient up to explore. Today, top-rated universities like Rutgers now offer a Master of Engineering in Biomedical Engineering through which students learn to combine two of the world’s most important sciences, technology and medicine, in ways we are only beginning to understand.

What Neurologists Have to Say About Advances in Bioengineering

If you want a closer look at the impact of bioengineering on medical science, you might want to think about what one neurologist had to say about the field of bioengineering. To quote his appreciation for the field of bioengineering

...imagine what it was like for neurologists just a few years ago before advances in engineering technology brought us imaging which made a doctor to see how neurons are moving around in the brain. Such tech(s) has made the doctor equivalent to God, literally.

Another prestigious biomedical engineering expert explains that with extremely sensitive sensors, we can now literally ‘see’ how neurons are moving around in the brain. He goes on to explain that this technology enables doctors to see what is happening in the brain when the test subject imagines moving an arm or a leg. Now consider the ramifications in bioengineering robotics for amputees. It’s almost unimaginable where bioengineering can lead us in the very near future, but more specialists in the field are needed for these advances to take place.

Bioengineering at the Center of Healthcare from Diagnostics to Treatments

So then, it’s easy to see how bioengineering is truly at the center of everything from diagnostics to treatments and as advances in technology continue over time, many diseases, illnesses and injuries are now treatable for the first time in history. Imagine the advances in technology that brought us PET scans that light up in color when cancer is present in a patient. Imagine how effective that is in pinpointing for early diagnosis and treatment, especially with radiation therapy.

Speaking of radiation therapy, that is another field highly impacted by technology and one in which literally millions of lives have been saved. What we take for granted today was once the vision of a biomedical engineering student and for that, the world is forever in their debt. From early diagnostics to therapies to bio-robotics, there isn’t any area of modern medicine that hasn’t been impacted by technology. Even health records are now digital, so the question remains, where would healthcare be without technology? You wouldn’t like the answer if you heard it, so don’t ask. Just know that advances in technology and bioengineering are making it possible to save more lives than ever before in history.