The year is 2031. You are in the research and development wing of a renowned hospital. Suddenly on the intercom there is an announcement. The Operation that has been raging on for four hours is almost at an end. The lab technician from within the Operation Theatre has sent a folder that contains the measurements, patient’s medical information and genetic information. Your task is to compile this data into your supercomputer and print out the required transplant organ. You input the data into your supercomputer and turn the 3D Printer on. Half an hour later, a full reconstructed heart with the proper valves and muscles is ready to be placed into the body. Another hour later, the operation is a success and the patient are stable.
Sounds like an extract from science fiction right? Believe it or not this is no longer a concept in the making. This is possible in the near future thanks to advancements in this field. What is this field known as? Biomedical Engineering. Sounds cool right? Well you have no idea how cool this field is.
What is Biomedical Engineering?
Biomedical Engineering is a multidisciplinary stream that combines the disciplines of engineering and apply it to the biological systems. All aspects of engineering, from mechanical engineering to chemical and genetic and cellular engineering are integrated into this field. Biomedical engineering focuses on prosthetics for amputees. Recent years have led to the development of advanced prosthetics that allows the device to grow in tandem with the growing limb. This is a combined effort of material science and cellular engineering. Apart from this biomedical engineer are able to create pacemakers, to help stabilize an erratic heart rhythm, A cochlear implant to help children and the elderly to regain or restore their lost sense of hearing. Apart from these marvels, ongoing research in this field have actually led to working prototypes of 3D printers that are capable of printing our entire biological organs. There is also another field of research that is happening in this field. It is known as stem cell research. If these cells are programmed correctly, there is unlimited potential for these cells to develop into any biological structure and organ. This is where the above scenario I described comes into play.
Stem cells can be used in organ transplants. The patient’s cell is taken and using the patient’s own medical and genetic data, the cell is reprogrammed to the cell type the patient needs. This is then fed into the 3D Printer and the fully, functioning organ is printed out.
Career prospects
Biomedical engineering is a very promising career option across the world. It is in very high demand and the Annual salary is INR 3 Lakh. Further Experienced personnel can earn much higher. Aspirants can also follow a field from medicine combined with biomedical engineering to increase the worth of their qualifications.