A medical device is an apparatus that uses engineering and scientific principles to interface to physiology and diagnose or treat a disease. In this Lecture, author Gail Baura specifically considers those medical devices that are computer-based, and are therefore referred to as medical instruments. Further, the medical instruments discussed are those that incorporate system theory into their designs. She divides these types of instruments into those that provide continuous observation and those that provide a single snapshot of health information. These instruments are termed patient monitoring devices and diagnostic devices, respectively.
