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INTRODUCTION
This noticeable success in the field of IMDs
and the major advancements in wireless sen-
sor network algorithms and applications, have
stimulated the emergence of specialized biologi-
cal networks termed as Body Sensor Networks
(BSNs) or Body Area Networks (BANs). BSNs
are specialized wireless sensor networks whose
nodes are deployed on the human body either in
the form of attached/embedded electrode-like
patches, or wearable as part of the human cloth-
ing. In both cases BSNs consist of a collection of
sensor nodes situated at strategic locations in the
human body and capable of extracting and wire-
lessly communicating vital body signals and other
context-specific environmental measurements to
centralized servers in hospitals and health care
units. Some of the vital body signals that can be
monitored by a BSN are: Systolic and Diastolic
blood pressure, heart rate, ElectroCardioGram
(ECG), ElectroMyoGram (EMG), ElectoEncepha-
loGram (EEG) records, breathing rate, Galvanic
Skin Response (GSR), temperature, proximity, etc.
The field of implantable medical devices (IMDs)
has witnessed a rapid proliferation and increased
success in the past ten years. Building on the tech-
nological advancements in the fields of embedded
computing, processor design, and wireless radio
communications, these devices are now capable of
performing vital monitoring and control activities
inside the human body. Most of today's sophis-
ticated human implantable devices, such as drug
delivery systems, neurological stimulators, car-
diac defibrillators, and pacemakers, are equipped
with dedicated computing power resources and
supported with wireless radio transmission capa-
bilities. Such advanced computing and network
communication capabilities allow these devices
to deliver critical telemetric remote monitoring
services in real time over the Internet. A recent
study shows that over 25 million US residents
depend on human IMDs in delivering crucial
and life-supporting monitoring and treatment
functionalities in their bodies (Maisel, 2005).
Figure 1. A typical body sensor network architecture
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