Chapter 6 - Impact of VLSI on Medicine

Publisher Summary With its low cost, small size, and great versatility, VLSI technology is destined to have a most significant impact on medicine and the delivery of health care. Cost containment will occur via increased clinical and administrative efficiency through better facilities for hospital management and medical research. VLSI will improve the cost effectiveness of medical devices through advanced, smaller-sized circuitry, which provides increased sophistication and enhanced function. In the past decade, knowledge of how to use computers in the health care field has rapidly advanced. The problems posed by size, reliability, and the inherent high costs of earlier specialized sophisticated computer systems with discrete electronics severely limited their accessibility to laboratories, clinics, and hospitals. It has been only since the development of microminiature circuitry that the costs and size have been reduced, and various processes have been made available in which theoretical knowledge now may be practically applied.