Joint Harvard-MIT Medical Program Receives $1 Million

The Harvard-MIT Program in Health Sciences and Technology has received more than $1 million from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences to develop small computerized medical instruments, the Institute announced yesterday.

The grant will fund the joint program's Biomedical Engineering Center for Clinical Instrumentation.

Dr. Stephen K. Burns, technical director of the center, said yesterday the center's chief goal is to create cheaper medical instruments with sophisticated computer technology.

The center will use the funds to try to develop a portable electro-cardiogram analyzer, a probe which measures the blood flow rate in tissue, and two larger instruments to analyze respiratory and dizziness data.

Dr. Roger G. Mark, overall director of the center, called the research an "exciting" attempt to apply technology to practical medical needs.

The four instruments should be ready for clinical evaluation in approximately two years, Burns said.

Research will be conducted at Peter Bent Brigham Hospital, Beth Israel Hospital, both affiliated with Harvard, Mass. Eye and Ear Infirmary, North-eastern University, and MIT. The research will be coordinated through MIT.