Disciplines in biomedical engineering

Biomedical engineering is widely considered an interdisciplinary field, resulting in a broad spectrum of disciplines that draw influence from various fields and sources. Due to the extreme diversity, it is not atypical for a biomedical engineer to focus on a particular aspect. There are many different taxonomic breakdowns of BME, one such listing defines the aspects of the field as such:

*Bioelectrical and neural engineering
*Biomedical imaging and biomedical optics
*Biomaterials
*Biomechanics and biotransport
*Biomedical devices and instrumentation
*Molecular, cellular and tissue engineering
*Systems and integrative engineering
In other cases, disciplines within BME are broken down based on the closest association to another, more established engineering field, which typically include:

Breast implants, an example of a biomedical engineering application of biocompatible materials to cosmetic surgery.

*Chemical engineering - often associated with biochemical, cellular, molecular and tissue engineering, biomaterials, and biotransport.
*Electrical engineering - often associated with bioelectrical and neural engineering, bioinstrumentation, biomedical imaging, and medical devices.
*Mechanical engineering - often associated with biomechanics, biotransport, medical devices, and modeling of biological systems.
*Optics and Optical engineering - biomedical optics, imaging and medical devices.