The world is progressing rapidly. Our technology is improving day by day, solving different problems, including the ones in the medical field. In the 1990s, 3D printing was introduced, which gradually gave birth to the idea of Bio-Manufacturing, which changed our whole perspective regarding medical treatments. It has played a vital role in the manufacturing of solid bone models and other materials for orthopedic surgery. So far, it has been used in spine surgery for developing intravertebral implants, rehabilitation supports, and guidance templates. They are also used to create spine models and applied prosthesis.
There are multiple ways in which 3D printed materials can help surgeons. Let us discuss them in detail.
3D printed spine models can be used to teach the structure of the spine to medical students. They can help the students in gaining strong anatomical knowledge. 3D printed models help in identifying small details like complex fracture markers. They are ideal for practicing spine surgery. Previous research indicates that students perform much better when they are trained using 3D models instead of conventional teaching methods.
Surgeons must plan before conducting spine surgery. It is a complicated procedure and demands proper communication between the doctor and his patients. The doctor can discuss the problem and the treatment with his patient using 3D printing models. A 3D model can help the patient in understanding the complications without any need for theoretical knowledge.
Many kinds of auxiliary medical material can be developed using 3D printing technology, such as personalized aids, prototypes, and skeletal models. These aids have proven to be quite helpful to surgeons in treating illnesses.
3D printed models can create medical devices to assist treatment and rehabilitation. This technology can be used to make custom-designed or personalized rehabilitation supports for the patient according to his weight and spine curvatures. This way, we will be able to accommodate every patient’s needs and increase the rate of recovery.
In osteoporosis, bones become weaker with time which leads to the risk of secondary fractures. 3D printing can be used to create bone trabeculae with unique structural properties. This method can also be used to predict the risk of fracture. To treat osteoporosis, different kinds of materials can be used. It is yet to see which material is suitable for this kind of orthopedic surgery. We have three kinds of materials available in the market.
Stainless steel ensures a stainless application. It is corrosion-resistant. However, it is fragile. It is possible for this metal to not withstand physiological loading conditions. Therefore, this material is not suitable for such procedures.
Cobalt-chromium alloy is a strong metal with fatigue and yield strength. However, upon corrosion, it releases harmful ions. Therefore, it is better not to use it.
Titanium has high strength, low density, and low Young’s modulus. It can resist carrion and is biocompatible. Other materials like ceramic or plastic can be added to titanium to increase its yield strength. This makes titanium alloy ideal for use in spine surgeries to treat osteoporosis.
There is hope that we will be able to treat osteoporosis with this technology. 3D printing technology makes surgical procedures safe, minimizes errors, and ensures better performance. It has played a vital role in orthosis and prosthesis 3. However, there are still many complications that need to be addressed. This method, no matter how reliable, is still time-consuming. In emergency surgeries, these will not be possible to make. There is still not much research related to the use of ideal material for 3D printing. We need more research work, larger samples, clinical trials, and basic testing to conclude. Hence, we can say that 3D printing technology in bio-manufacturing has not reached its goal yet. However, it is improving gradually with time and may unlock better medical use in the future.
This article is based upon a recently published research article.
1. Provaggi, E., Leong, J. J., & Kalaskar, D. M. (2017). Applications of 3D printing in the management of severe spinal conditions. Proceedings of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, Part H: Journal of Engineering in Medicine, 231(6), 471-486.
2. Mobbs, R. J., Coughlan, M., Thompson, R., Sutterlin, C. E., & Phan, K. (2017). The utility of 3D printing for surgical planning and patient-specific implant design for complex spinal pathologies: case report. Journal of Neurosurgery: Spine, 26(4), 513-518.
3. Miclaus, R., Repanovici, A., & Roman, N. (2017). Biomaterials: Polylactic acid and 3D printing processes for orthosis and prosthesis. Materiale plastice, 54(1), 98-102.
4. Sheha, E. D., Gandhi, S. D., & Colman, M. W. (2019). 3D printing in spine surgery. Annals of translational medicine, 7(Suppl 5).
5. Wang, B., Feng, C., Pan, J., Zhou, S., Sun, Z., Shao, Y., & Yang, T. (2021). The Effect of 3D Printing Metal Materials on Osteoporosis Treatment. BioMed Research International, 2021.
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