Through the active transfer of technology, NASA Technology Utilization (TU) Program assists private companies, associations, and government agencies to make effective use of NASA's technological resources to improve U.S. economic competitiveness and to provide societal benefit. Aerospace technology from such areas as digital image processing, space medicine and biology, microelectronics, optics, and electro-optics, and ultrasonic imaging have found many secondary applications in medicine. Examples of technology spinoffs are briefly discussed to illustrate the benefits realized through adaptation of aerospace technology to solve health care problems. Successful implementation of new technologies increasingly requires the collaboration of industry, universities, and government and the TU Program serves as the liaison to establish such collaborations with NASA. NASA technology is an important resource to support the development of new medical products and techniques that will further advance the quality of health care available in the U.S. and worldwide

Friedman, Donald S.

English

NASA Technical Reports Server

N91-23028
BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS OF NASA TECHNOLOGY
Donald S. Friedman
Chief, Office of Commercial Programs
NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
Greenbelt, MD
ABSTRACT
Through the active transfer of technology, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Technology Utilization (TU) Program assists private companies, associations, and government agencies to
make effective use of NASA's technological resources to improve U.S. economic competitiveness and to
provide societal benefit. Aerospace technology from areas such as digital image processing, space medicine
and biology, microelectronics, optics and electro-optics, and ultrasonicimaginghave found many secondary
appfications in medicine. Examples of technology spinoffs are briefly discussed to illustrate the benefits
realized through adaptation of aerospace technology to solve health care problems. Successful
implementation of new technologies increasingly requires the collaboration of industry, universities, and
government and the TU Program serves as the liaison to establish such collaborations with NASA. NASA
technology is an important resource to support the development of new medical products and techniques
that will further advance the quality of health care available in the United States and worldwide.
INTRODUCTION
In the early 1900s, few effective treatments existed for life-threatening diseases because medical care
consisted primarily of palliative treatments to mitigate the effects of diseases. Since then, advances in
biomedical sciences and technology have produced more effective diagnostic methods and treatments that
together have far-reaching effects on medical care and human life expectancy. The pace of technological
change in recent decades has been unprecedented, enabling us to reduce infant mortality, to eradicate
certain diseases, to replace and repair human organs, and to rehabilitate those with disabilities so that they
may live happier and more productive fives.
Through the active transfer of technology, NASA has played an important role in many technological
developments that have advanced the quality of medical care in the U.S. and throughout the world. Meeting
the aeronautical and space goals of the past three decades has necessitated advancements across a broad
spectrum that embraces virtually every scientific and technological discipline. This technology represents an
important national resource available for use by public and private sector organizations to develop new or
improved products and processes.
To promote the secondary application of aerospace technology in medicine, NASA works with medical
device companies, medical universities, major hospitals, and research centers, as well as Federal agencies
such as the National Institutes of Health and the Veterans Administration. These collaborations are
supported by the NASA (TU) Program whose mandate is to promote the widest practical and appropriate
dissemination of the results of NASA's R&D activities. The TU program encourages and facilitates the
access and utilization of NASA-developed technology by public and private researchers, developers, and
entrepreneurs. The engineers on the NASA Technology Application Team at Research Triangle Institute
(RTI) provide an active interface among NASA, research institutions, and private businesses to assist in
identifying and developing technology transfer opportunities. Technology Utilization Officers (TUOs) are
located at each of NASA's Field Centers and serve as the gateway for external inquiries to access the
technological resources of, their respective Centers. The following examples of technology spinoffs illustrate
just a few of the benefits realized through secondary applications of aerospace technology.
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Lixiscope
When scientists discovered that some galaxies and stars emit X-rays, they set about developing imaging
techniques to enhance the relatively low levels of radiation coming from these far-off sources. Because the
new detector developed was able to image low-intensity X-rays, this detector can be used with a much
smaller X-ray source for less risky medical imaging procedures. This technology has taken the form of a
low-intensity X-ray imaging scope (Lixiscope). Originally developed by Goddard Space Flight Center, the
Lixiscope is being produced by Lixi, Inc. of Downers Grove, Illinois. The Lixiscope is a self-contained,
battery-powered fluoroscope that produces an instant X-ray image through use of a small amount of
radioactive isotope. This unit is designed to utilize less than 1 percent of the radiation required by
conventional X-ray devices. Because this system is completely portable, it provides a way to immediately
scan athletes for possible bone injuries at the site of the sporting event, or for other such emergency medical
uses. Other applications for this system include dentistry and orthopedic surgery. The Lixiseope is finding
growing acceptance as an industrial tool in the U.S. and abroad for rapid nondestructive testing for the
development of X-ray film. It is also used in security applications, such as examining parcels in mail rooms
and building entries.
Cardiac Defibrillation
Appro_dmately 50,000 people die each year in the U.S. due to ventxicular fibrillation, where the electrical
conduction system of the heart becomes "short circuited." The muscles of the heart contract in a
disorganized fashion, and the heart does not pump blood efficiently. When it can be applied in time,
electric shock defibrillation is generally successful in restoring normal electrical activity to the heart.
Unfortunately, most of those who die each year from a fibrillation episode are away from a hospital, where
they could receive proper treatment.
As the population of astronauts became more diverse, the possibility of a cardiac episode needed to be
considered. NASA's Johnson Space Center, in conjunction with International Biomedical of Houston, Texas,
developed an advanced defibrillator monitoring system. This system combines the defibrillator paddles with
a microprocessor-based monitoring system to display both treatment and patient information. The system is
lightweight, portable, and easy to operate. Such equipment is being considered as part of a life support
module for future shuttle flights.
In a related project, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, Johns Hopkins University, and Intec
Systems, Inc., collaborated on the development of an implantable device capable of sensing ventricular
fibrillation and delivering a brief defibrillating electrical pulse. The implant incorporates advanced
microelectronics and sensors to provide programmability to adapt to individual patient requirements.
Subsequently, the ability to detect and correct ventricular tachycardia, another form of arrhythmia, was
added to the device. The resulting product, called the Automatic Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator
(AICD) has been commercialized by Cardiac Pacemakers, Inc. Through telemetry, the device can be
interrogated to determine if a defibrillating pulse has been provided, and if so, to look at the
electrocardiogram just prior to and following the episode. Hundreds of life saving situations have been
documented with use of this system.
Programmable, Implantable Medication System
Over one million Americans suffer from diabetes, a disease that destroys the body's ability to control its
blood sugar and produces such serious complications as heart disease, kidney malfimction, and blindness.
Yet most diabetics are able to live long, productive lives by closely monitoring blood sugar levels, continually
injecting insulin, and carefully controlling diet and activity levels. Now, a new technology has emerged that
may ultimately free diabetics and victims of other long-term diseases from their restrictive lifestyles.
Engineers have developed a programmable, implantable medication system (PIMS) that will automatically
deliver prescribed doses of medication to key areas in the body, eliminating the need for burdensome
self-medication programs. In addition, research has shown that infusion of %hort-acting" insulin in small
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amountsover a long period - instead of multiple daily injections of "long-acting" insulin - has helped many
diabetics achieve better control of blood sugar levels, thereby minimizing the possibility of complications.
The device is the size of hockey puck, is encased in a titanium shell, and holds about two-and-a-half
teaspoons of concentrated insulin administered at a preprogrammed rate. If a change in measured blood
sugar level dictates a different dose, the patient can vary the amount of insulin delivered by holding a small
radio transceiver over the implanted system and dialing in a specific program held in the PIMS computer
memory. A miniature two-way communications system, based on the space technology of telemetry, sends
out signals from the implant with operating information such as insulin usage and pump performance. When
an insulin refdl is needed, four to six times a year, it is accomplished without surgery by a special
hypodermic needle.
Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) headed the initial development of PIMS
as a TU project sponsored by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. PIMS is an outstanding example of
how space technology offers special utility in medical systems. PIMS employs several technologies derived
from R&D work on NASA space systems, including a tiny, microminiaturized fluid control system initially
used in life search experiments aboard two NASA Viking spacecraft that landed on Mars. MiniMed
Technologies of Syhnar, California, licensee of the technology, has been refining the design of PIMS since
the initial development at APL. The PIMS unit has performed well in clinical trials and is entering a second
phase of trials for various applications. The technologies in PIMS have also been incorporated in portable
external pumps marketed by MiniMed and by the Biomedical Group of Parker Hannifan Corporation, of
lrvine, California. These pocket-sized micropumps allow ambulatory infusion of chemotherapeutic,
antibiotic, and antipain medications.
On the Horizon
Two human imperatives, exploration and improving the condition of mankind, have found common
ground in the space program. Technologies developed to meet the awesome ehaUenges of space exploration
in the past three decades have paid extra dividends in improving the quality of life on Earth. Medical
innovations derived from space technology that may be seen in the next decade include: a technique for
noninvasive measurement of intracranial pressure, a critical parameter in the treatment of head injury; a
device for management of dangerous wandering behavior in Alzheimer's patients; improved heart valves
made possible by computational fluid dynamics; an analytical technology developed for aerospace
applications; and an adjustable shunt for improved control of cerebrospinal fluid pressure in children with
hydrocephalus.
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Biomedical applications of NASA technology

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