Biomedical instrumentation in the Soviet Union.

By utilizing biomedical instrumentation from other nations, and by designing and fabricating instrumentation in several institutes under the control of the Medical Industries Ministry and the U.S.S.R. Academy of Medical Sciences, the Soviet Union has attempted to a bridge a 20 to 30-year technology gap. The lack of interagency cooperation and sophisticated manufacturing capability, combined with a system not directed to recognizing or exploiting innovation from within, suggests continued dependence on other countries. The Soviet system in these regards serves well as an example of a bureaucracy and system limiting technologic advancement. It is hoped that future actions in this country, in response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's direct regulatory control over U.S. medical devices, will not lead to a similar stifling of technology development.