1. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING A New, Promising Interdisciplinary Field
Wei R. Chen, Ph.D. Professor Director of Biomedical Engineering Program Department of Physics and Engineering University of Central Oklahoma
September 13, 2005 UCO Intro to Engineering Class

2. OUTLINE What is Biomedical Engineering BME in US -- current status
Professions in BME
Jobs for Biomedical Engineering Graduates
BME in US -- current status
The New BME program at UCO
Program design and curriculum
Examples of Research in BME
Biomedical imaging of cancer
Biomedical engineering modalities for cancer treatment

3. WHAT IS BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
Application of engineering skills, principles, and tools to problems in biology, medicine, and health care
Interdisciplinary field requiring a unique curriculum that provides students with an understanding of both engineering principles and the life sciences

4. WHAT DO BME STUDENTS LEARN
Basic human physiology and functions
Human biological systems in terms of fundamental physics and engineering principles
Basic chemistry knowledge and laboratory techniques
Knowledge of biomaterials, biomechanics and related fields

5. WHAT DO BME STUDENTS LEARN
Latest instrumentation and methodologies in biomedical engineering
Use computers in a biomedical setting
Research experience in biomedical settings
Practical biomedical engineering experience through job-related training, industrial internships, and biomedical design projects

6. WHERE DO BME UNDERGRADUATES GO
Professional Workforce
Medical device and process manufacturers
Medical research organizations
Government medical agencies and hospitals
Graduate Schools
Biomedical engineering
Other engineering and related disciplines
Other Professional Schools
Medical, dental, and law

7. JOBS FOR BME GRADUATES
designing and constructing cardiac pacemakers, defibrillators, artificial kidneys, blood oxygenators, hearts, blood vessels, joints, arms, and legs.
designing computer systems to monitor patients during surgery or in intensive care, or to monitor healthy persons in unusual environments, such as astronauts in space or underwater divers at great depth.

8. JOBS FOR BME GRADUATES
designing and building sensors to measure blood chemistry, such as potassium, sodium, O2, CO2, and pH.
designing instruments and devices for therapeutic uses, such as a laser system for eye surgery or a device for automated delivery of insulin.
constructing and implementing mathematical/computer models of physiological systems.

9. JOBS FOR BME GRADUATES
designing clinical laboratories and other units within the hospital and health care delivery system that utilize advanced technology.
designing, building and investigating medical imaging systems based on X-rays (computer assisted tomography), isotopes (position emission tomography), magnetic fields (magnetic resonance imaging), ultrasound, or newer modalities.

10. JOBS FOR BME GRADUATES
designing and constructing biomaterials and determining the mechanical, transport, and biocompatibility properties of implantable artificial materials.
investigating the biomechanics of injury and wound healing.

11. JOBS FOR BME GRADUATES
implementing new diagnostic procedures, especially those requiring engineering analyses to determine parameters that are not directly accessible to measurements, such as in the lungs or heart.

12. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN THE UNITED STATES
History
Starting in 1960’s
Johns Hopkins University
Current Status
117 colleges and universities
102 undergraduate degree programs
105 master’s degree programs
101 doctoral degree programs
The Whitaker Foundation, 2005

13. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN THE UNITED STATES
In the Past Twenty Years
BME Undergraduate Enrollment
UP 200%
BME Graduate Enrollment
UP 300%
Other Engineering Enrollment
Slightly decline

14. The Whitaker Foundation, 2001

15. U.S. Department of Labor, 2002

16. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING JOBS
Average Starting Salary Offer (2001): Bachelor BME Candidate: $47,850 Master BME Candidate: $62,600
Survey, National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2002

19. UCO BME GRADUATES
Graduate Schools Environment Companies BME Software Applications Other Transitional work

20. NEW BME UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM AT UCO
Business Trend
Biotechnology booming
Next major discipline (PRISM, Sept. 1999)
Employment
Increasing demands (World, U.S. and OK)
Important, fulfilling profession
High pay
Saving lives

21. BIOTECH INDUSTRY IN OKLAHOMA
Early development stage
Shortage of trained BME personnel
Lack of undergraduate BME program
Companies leave states
Students leave states to pursue BME education (to Texas)

22. BME CURRICULUM PROGRAM AT UCO Concentration A: Pre-Medicine
Biology: 11 hours
Chemistry: 25 hours
Engineering: 39 hours
Math and Computer Science: 14 hours
Physics: 8 hours
General Ed: 29 hours
Total: 126 hours

23. BME CURRICULUM PROGRAM AT UCO Concentration B: Bio-Instrumentation
Biology: 11 hours
Chemistry: 10 hours
Engineering: 45 hours
Math and Computer Science: 14 hours
Physics: 18 hours
General Ed: 29 hours
Total: 127 hours

24. BME PROGRAM AT UCO Major Goals
Provide Oklahoma students with an opportunity to pursue a BME undergraduate degree
Prepare students to pursue a BME doctoral degree at OU Bioengineering Center and OSU Center for Laser and Photonics Research
Establish, in collaboration with OU, OUHSC, OSU and health industries, a regional center for BME undergraduate education

25. BME PROGRAM AT UCO Major Goals
Facilitate for students with associate degree in BME from community colleges to pursue a BS degree in BME
Establish collaboration with local biomedical companies for internship and job training
Graduate at least ten students each year with BS degree in BME, with at least five students continuing BME education in graduate school

26. SUPPORT FOR THE BME PROGRAM AT UCO
Support from departments of Colleges of Math and Science at UCO
Biology
Chemistry
Computer Science
Mathematics
Physics and Engineering

27. SUPPORT FOR THE BME PROGRAM AT UCO
Support from External Institutions
OU Health Center
OU Bioengineering Center
OU Department of Physiology and Biophysics
OU Department of Cell Biology
OSU Veterinary Laser Surgery Center
OSU Sensor Technology Center

28. SUPPORT FOR THE BME PROGRAM AT UCO
Support from Oklahoma Industry
UroCor
ZymeTx
Wound Healing of Oklahoma
SoundTech
Nanomagnetic
Etc.

29. CURRENT BME COURSES Principle of Biomedical Engineering
Introduction to applications of physics and engineering principles to biomedical systems
Study of biomedical functions of the human body using mechanics, electricity and magnetism, optics, and thermodynamics
Responses of human biomedical functions to different bioengineering applications

30. NEW BME COURSES AT UCO Signals and Control Systems & Lab
Signal Analysis in Time Domain
Signal Analysis in Frequency Domain
System Controls
Background Information and Experiments

31. NEW BME COURSES AT UCO Biomedical Imaging
Introduction to applications of physics and engineering principles in medical diagnostics and treatment
Methods and instrumentation in biomedical imaging such as x-ray, MRI, and ultrasound, etc.
Biomedical imaging processing

32. NEW BME COURSES AT UCO Biomedical Instrumentation
Measurement of analysis of biological systems
Components of instrumentation:
Transducer, circuits
Display and analysis of biomedical signals
Data acquisition and controls
Safety

33. NEW BME COURSES AT UCO BME Senior Engineering Design I & II
Identify design-related project
Written project proposal
Team work
Design, develop, test, and evaluate project
Project report

34. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING – PRODUCE OF SYNERGISM
DIFFERENT DISCIPLINES
Physical Sciences – Physics and Chemistry
Mathematics and Computer
Biological Sciences and Medicine
Engineering
DIFFERENT EFFORTS
Education
Health Care
Industry

35. BME RESEARCH AT UCO
Cancer Treatment Using Selective Photothermal Interactions
Dye targeted tissue
Noninvasive laser treatment
Photo Dynamic Immuno Therapy in Treatment of Metastatic Tumors
Laser
Laser-absorbing dye
Immunoadjuvant

36. BME RESEARCH AT UCO X-Ray Biomedical Imaging Laser-Tissue Interactions
Breast cancer detection
Imaging guided laser treatment
Laser-Tissue Interactions
Energy and temperature distributions
Experiments
Monte Carlo simulations

37. EXAMPLES OF RESEARCH ACTIVITIES AT UCO
Photo Dynamic Immuno Therapy
Dye-immunoadjuvant injection
Noninvasive laser irradiation
Long-term survival
Resistance to tumor rechallenge
Adoptive immunity transfer
Treatment of metastatic tumors

42. Scintillator
CCD
Optical Lens
Rat
X-Ray Tube

43. (a)
(b)

44. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN RESEARCH
Tumor Detection
Imaging technique
Tumor localization for injection
Distribution of Drug in Tumor
Transport phenomenon
Chemical engineering

45. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN RESEARCH
Laser Energy Delivery-Engineering
Dosage calculation and optimization
Optical system for energy delivery
Engineering design
Thermal Tissue Interaction
Energy and temperature distribution
Mathematics and computer modeling

46. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN RESEARCH
Optimization of Laser Treatment
Laser parameters
Dye dose: concentration & volume
Immunoadjuvant dose: concentration & volume
Anti-Tumor Immune Response
Tumor immunology
Molecular biology

47. BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING IN RESEARCH
Interdisciplinary Research
Biology
Chemistry
Physics
Engineering
Mathematics
Computer modeling

48. FURTHER INFORMATION ON BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
Biomedical Engineering Handbook
Related Web Sites:
Biomedical Engineering Society
The Whitaker Foundation for BME
BME Net

49. FURTHER INFORMATION ON BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING
Related Web Sites:
BME Program at Johns Hopkins University
BME Program at University of Virginia
BME Program at Texas A&M University

50. THE END