What Is IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering?

IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering (RBME) is a peer-reviewed journal that publishes comprehensive review articles on advances in biomedical engineering, an interdisciplinary field that integrates principles from electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, computer science, and the life sciences to address problems in medicine and biology. Unlike primary research journals that publish original experimental results, RBME focuses on consolidating existing knowledge, synthesizing findings across multiple studies, and identifying emerging directions in the field. The journal has been published continuously since 2008 under the auspices of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS).

RBME occupies a distinct position within the IEEE publishing portfolio. Its mandate is to serve researchers in biomedical engineering, clinicians, life scientists, and engineers from adjacent disciplines who need accessible, authoritative syntheses of rapidly evolving topics. The journal aims to consolidate research for members of all IEEE societies as well as the broader scientific community that holds an interest in the biomedical domain.

Scope and Subject Coverage

The journal covers biomedical engineering in its full interdisciplinary breadth. Topics include medical imaging, neural engineering, biosensors and bioelectronics, biomechanics, tissue engineering, bioinformatics, physiological signal processing, and rehabilitation engineering. Reviews may address fundamental biological questions approached with engineering tools or engineering challenges arising from medical applications. The journal does not publish original research articles, case studies, or conference proceedings; submissions must take the form of comprehensive reviews that provide systematic, in-depth analysis of a defined area.

Review Format and Editorial Standards

Articles in RBME are substantially longer than those in primary research journals, typically running to several tens of pages with extensive reference lists. Authors are expected to survey the published literature comprehensively, evaluate methodological approaches, identify consensus findings, and frame open research questions. The editorial process involves subject-matter experts drawn from both the engineering and biomedical science communities, reflecting the journal's interdisciplinary character. Papers are accessible through IEEE Xplore, the central digital library for IEEE publications. As of 2024, RBME reported an impact factor above 14, placing it among the higher-ranked publications in biomedical engineering.

Relationship to IEEE EMBS

RBME is one of several publications operated by the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society, which is the IEEE society most directly concerned with the intersection of engineering and medicine. EMBS also publishes the IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, the IEEE Transactions on Neural Systems and Rehabilitation Engineering, and the IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics, among others. RBME complements these primary research journals by offering a venue for synthetic scholarship that frames the field's current state for researchers entering new areas or seeking to understand developments outside their own specialization.

Applications

IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering has applications in a wide range of activities, including:

• Guiding researchers entering new areas of biomedical engineering through comprehensive literature surveys
• Supporting clinical translation by connecting engineering advances to medical needs
• Informing curriculum development in biomedical engineering graduate programs
• Providing engineers in adjacent disciplines with accessible overviews of life science topics
• Establishing consensus frameworks for emerging interdisciplinary research directions