Medical equipment
Medical equipment is designed to aid in the diagnosis, monitoring or treatment of medical conditions.
Types
There are several basic types:
- Diagnostic equipment includes medical imaging machines, used to aid in diagnosis. Examples are ultrasound and MRI machines, PET and CT scanners, and x-ray machines.
- Therapeutic equipment includes infusion pumps, medical lasers and LASIK surgical machines.
- Life support equipment is used to maintain a patient's bodily function. This includes medical ventilators, anaesthetic machines, heart-lung machines, ECMO, and dialysis machines.
- Medical monitors allow medical staff to measure a patient's medical state. Monitors may measure patient vital signs and other parameters including ECG, EEG, blood pressure, and dissolved gases in the blood.
- Medical laboratory equipment automates or helps analyze blood, urine and genes.
- Diagnostic Medical Equipment may also be used in the home for certain purposes, e.g. for the control of diabetes mellitus
A biomedical equipment technician (BMET) is a vital component of the healthcare delivery system. Employed primarily by hospitals, BMETs are the people responsible for maintaining a facility's medical equipment.
Inventions
- 1895, X-ray, by Wilhelm Röntgen
- 1903, electrocardiograph, by Willem Einthoven
- 1956, endoscope, by Basil Hirschowitz
- 1958, ultrasound scan, by Ian Donald
- 1958, Pacemaker, by Rune Elmqvist
- 1973, CT (CAT) scan, by Godfrey Hounsfield and Allan Cormack
- 1982, artificial heart, by Robert Jarvik[1]
Notable medical equipment companies
Safety standards
See Also
References
- ^ The Running Press Cyclopedia: The Portable, Visual Encyclopedia.