Electronics aids the 'biomedics'

In an evolutionary biomedical engineering year, notable more for refinements than for breakthroughs, non-invasive medical imaging techniques were at the fore. Diagnostic instruments known as computerized axial tomographic X-ray scanners, previously available for scanning the human brain, came on the market for clinical evaluation in whole body scanning. Impressive gains were made, once again, in ultrasonic diagnostic imaging. And, in fields other than imaging, progress was noteworthy in prosthetic devices and in electric stimulation devices both for the control of pain and for muscle activation.