BMT 2024 in "The Länd"

That was a great event - the BMT 2024 in Stuttgart

The annual conference of the VDE DGBMT was held in Stuttgart this year. Experts from the field of biomedical engineering exchanged discussed research findings, technologies, trends and potential application.

Under the chairmanship of conference president Prof. Peter P. Pott, head of the Institute for Medical Device Technology (IMT), the annual conference of the German Society for Biomedical Engineering in the VDE took place at the University of Stuttgart from September 18-20, 2024.

It was a top-class event with a varied program. In addition to excellent lectures and poster presentations, there was time for discussion and exchange - also across generations, from students and young professionals to experienced and established experts.

“Combining life sciences and engineering is the key to radically improving not only biomedical research, but also the technologies available in the healthcare sector,” says Prof. Peter P. Pott, Head of the Institute of Medical Device Technology (IMT) at the University of Stuttgart and Chairman of the BMT 2024 Annual Conference of the German Society for Biomedical Engineering in the VDE (VDE DGBMT).

Satellite Event Young Forum BMT

Traditionally, the “Young Forum BMT” took place the day before the conference. An inspiring and enriching event organized by voluntary members of the VDE Young Net to bring together young talents in the field of biomedical engineering. In addition to networking with each other, the satellite event provides valuable insights into current trends and topics in biomedical engineering and offers the opportunity to exchange ideas with the leading minds in the industry.

This year's program included a workshop on “Change Management and Communication” as well as visits to Erbe Elektromedizin GmbH and Bentley InnoMed GmbH. The group concluded the day with a fun networking event in a brewery.

The DGBMT annual conference also featured the familiar program items of the Young Forum BMT: at the “Lunch with Leaders” there was a lively exchange with experts from the industry in a relaxed atmosphere. As an “old hand”, Prof. Dr. Hugo Hämmerle shared his experiences from over 30 years as a scientist and founder of 15 start-ups with the young generation this year.

Biomedical technology offers great potential for healthcare. At BMT 2024, around 400 scientists, young researchers, doctors, engineers and young professionals discussed new findings and trends in this field. This year's agenda among others also included patient-centered medicine, regulatory issues, sustainability in healthcare and the digital transformation.

Exiting keynotes from science, medicine and industry

Professor Pott managed to attract high-caliber key note speakers - not only from Germany, but also from the USA.

One of the highlights of the congress was the presentation by Dr. Rory A. Cooper. The US scientist, engineer and founder of the Human Engineering Research Laboratories (HERL) reflected on participatory future design that includes people with disabilities.

In his keynote speech, Prof. Bernhard Hirt, Director of the Institute of Clinical Anatomy and Cell Analysis and Dean of Preclinical Studies at the University of Tübingen, explained how research and development can be ethically combined on a surgical training platform.

Prof. Katja Schenke-Layland, Professor of Medical Technology and Regenerative Medicine at the University of Tübingen, spoke about biomaterials for regenerative medicine that are inspired by developmental biology.

Prof. Dr. Rebecca Fahrig, innovation expert at Siemens Healthineers GmbH, Erlangen and Professor of Computer Science at the Friedrich-Alexander University dealt with AI and Automation in the interventional Suite.

Dipl.-Ing. Marcus C. Felstead, Chief Commercial Officer of Erbe Elektromedizin GmbH in Tübingen, talked about what needs to be considered when introducing digital products.

Science - working groups - networking

In addition to the key notes, there was a wide-ranging scientific program covering many areas of biomedical engineering with exciting and innovative work.

The expert committees of the DGBMT also met and invited interested parties to their open meetings to find out about the activities of the expert groups. There was a great deal of interest and some of the expert committees were certainly able to gain new members.

The “BMshE - Women in (bio)medical engineering” network once again contributed several program items, including one on career paths for women in biomedical engineering. It was impressive to hear the individual paths of the six guests, who described their motivations and careers.

And by the way, it is always possible to join the expert committees and specialist groups and new members are always welcome. Find out which topics the individual committees deal with and who the respective contact persons are.

VDE DGBMT awards prizes to promising young scientists

Klee Prize

The DGBMT Prize of the “Klee Family Foundation” is awarded annually to promote young scientists. The best three papers are awarded monetary prizes of up to 5,000 euros. The 2024 winners are:

Dr. Johanna Winter from Klinikum rechts der Isar (Munich). She was awarded first place for her dissertation, in which she investigates how the use of microbeam therapy in cancer treatment can achieve better results with fewer side effects and lower treatment costs.

Dr. Tobias Menden from RWTH Aachen University, who now works for Pulsar Photonics in Herzogenrath, won second place. He dealt with the question of how pneumonia, atelectasis or edema in the lungs can be diagnosed at an early stage in order to prevent lung failure or treat it as quickly as possible.

Nikolina-Alexia Fasoula came third with her dissertation on the connection between skin changes and systemic complications in diabetes.

Prize for Innovation in Medical Technology

The prize for innovation in medical technology honors innovative solutions to medical problems that have been developed through interdisciplinary technical and scientific collaboration.

This year's winners are Christina Weber, Martin Duffner and Eduardo Romero Borrero from Puray in Munich. They are working on light disinfection for catheters (Sterilizing Light Solutions).

Award for patient safety in medical technology

The light disinfection was very convincing, and so Christina Weber, as first author, was able to win the prize for patient safety in medical technology in addition to the prize for innovation in medical technology with her work. The start-up certainly knows how to invest the cash prizes well.

Student competition

The student competition honors project and diploma theses in biomedical engineering. When submitting their work for the BMT, students choose whether they would like to take part in the competition. The ten best submissions are selected from all those registered. These in turn are evaluated again during the conference after their presentation to determine the top three places. This year they are:

1st place: Clara Demgensky from the University of Lübeck
Developmental and Validation of a Patient Model for Simulating Anaesthetic Uptake

2nd place: Sara Schwab from the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT)
Accuracy of a Learned Feature Descriptor in Laparoscopic Liver Surgery

3rd place: Raphael Mönkemöller from the Leibniz University in Hanover
Towards Less Invasive Instruments for Cardiac Tissue Stabilizing

The other finalists were:

Stolte, Franziska Sophie (Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) - Comparison of LGE-MRI and Local Impedance Data Recorded in Human Left Atria
Barioudi, Hatim  (Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Arts) - Predicting Upper body Muscle Activation Patterns in Paralympic Cross-Country Skiing Using Neural Networks and Accelerometer Data    
Thalmayer, Angelika (Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg) - Experimental and Simulative Analysis of Magnetic Nanoparticle Accumulation Using Various Halbach Arrays    
Ebers, Kevin (RWTH-Aachen University) - MR-Compatible Pump for the Validation of PC-MRI Flow Measurements    
Akrah, Aya (Technische Hochschule Ulm) - Investigation into the feasibility of a light- guide based prevention of catheter- associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI)   

DGBMT Fellow

Not an award for young scientists, but an honorary title for outstanding achievements for the society.

This year, the Board of the VDE DGBMT is delighted to be able to honor Professor Gerald Urban as a DGBMT Fellow 2024. We would like to thank Prof. Urban in particular for his many years of service as Chairman of the Advisory Board. He held this position until spring 2024.

Social program

The content-rich days concluded with a relaxed get-together and a pleasant evening event at the Dürnitz in the Landesmuseum Stuttgart. In this special atmosphere, there was the opportunity to exchange ideas and network over food and drink.

All summed up, it was a great and successful event with lots of positive feedback. We would like to thank Prof. Peter Pott, Dr. Max Schäfer and their team for their professional organization and hospitality.

The next annual meeting will take place from September 9-11, 2025 in Muttenz / Basel as joint conference of the Swiss (SSBE), Austrian (ÖGBMT) and German (VDE DGBMT) Societies for Biomedical Engineering in Switzerland, . We are already looking forward to it.