Novel key management schemes for medical sensor networks in telemedicine based applications

Abstract

Medical Sensor Networks (MSN) consist of a group of tiny and movable sensors that are capable of communicating with one another. Sensors can be wearable or implanted into the patient s body to observe parameters such as ECG, EEG and blood pressure level. Diagnostic equipments embedded with imaging technologies, genetic analysis etc., are used for collecting realistic data from patients. Conversely, there are numerous difficulties faced by Medical Sensor Networks before their deployment in the real world. Sensors have limited resources in terms of power consumption, memory and computational potential. Since the sensors are battery operated and small in size, power consumption, energy spent for communication, computation, memory management are the main issues to be considered. Therefore, Medical Sensor Networks require manageable and secure communication to assure confidentiality, integrity, authentication and nonrepudiation of real time medical data. Real time healthcare decreases the duration of stay in healthcare organizations by improving patient care. The existing healthcare information is intricate, with medical information streaming across a number of interlinked and communally dependent organizations, service providers and individual human beings. Medical information is conveyed electronically through LAN, MAN and WAN by using all kinds of wireless devices such as laptops, smart phones and especial hand held medical information devices like wireless medical telemetry. newline