Implantable systems – Retrospective tutorial review

Abstract

In this tutorial review, I present a retrospective view of a relationship between the human body and implantable technology that over last more than 40 years has became an important topic, not only in pop–culture but also in mainstream research and biomedical engineering. This relationship has been closely following the development in IC microelectronic technologies that enabled the system miniaturization and the interface between the living to nonliving matter. Naturally, with the progressively more accessible and smaller IC devices, the implantable systems were among the first to benefit due to their two principal requirements: small size and ultra–low energy consumption. Here, I review some of the main aspects of state-of-the-art implantable systems that are either entering or already entered clinical applications. In addition, I also delve into discussion related to some of the “side effects” within somewhat futuristic thoughts about this relationship that may be influencing our evolutionary path.