Origins, Growth, and Challenges in Bioheat Transfer

Bioheat transfer is a field with origins in medical applications that date to thousands of years ago. It has long been appreciated that manipulation of temperature and energy could have significant therapeutic benefits. However, prior to the Second World War, nearly all work in this field was based on empirical studies, many of which were guided by brilliant insights of medical and life scientists. In more recent times, the principles and methods of heat transfer have been applied systematically, and often times in conjunction with highly synergistic collaborations with physicians and biologists, to achieve remarkable advances that have translated to important innovations in life science and medicine. The following discussion presents a limited range of comments concerning work accomplished by researchers associated with the ASME Bioengineering Division.