The current feasibility of 3D printers in Healthcare

Limb Reproduction for Pediatric Care: 

Simple, sturdy and OK to outgrow are all important considerations in prosthetic hands for children, says Dr. Gloria Gogola, a pediatric hand surgeon at Shriners Hospital for Children, Houston. 3D printers produce lightweight, highly customizable and inexpensive artificial hands that are ideal for young patients, she says.

Jaw Surgery:

Jaw replacement surgery, a procedure for jaw tumors and infections, involves dental posts, prosthetic teeth and even leg bone. Reconstruction is a multi-part process, and patient recovery can be long and painful. Doctors at NYU Langone Medical Center, working with 3D Systems, have pioneered the procedure that uses 3D generated images in the virtual surgical plan. “With the ‘Jaw in a Day' method, many intermediary surgeries for the implants and prosthetics are no longer needed, shaving at least a year off recovery time for patients,” says Dr. Jamie P. Levine, chief of microsurgery at NYU Langone. 

Reproduction of Blood Vessel Networks: 

3D printing materials are not always metal or plastic. Harvard scientists have created a method to print tissue structures with blood vessel networks. As part of the still-evolving process, Jennifer Lewis, a biological engineering professor, and colleagues developed “bio inks” that contain ingredients of bodily tissues. According to a press release from Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, the bio-printing method may represent an early step toward building 3-D living tissue, such as skin and cartilage, for surgical use in patients.

Facial transplant:

The BWH face-transplant team is using life-sized models of patients’ heads, created with CT imaging and 3D printer technology. These models help surgeons understand the facial anatomy, do advance work and operate with increased confidence, according to a BWH press release. That means shorter time in the operating room.

Heart Transplant:

Heart surgery is delicate, especially for patients with unusual heart defects. Dr. Stephen Seslar, a congenital heart disease specialist and electrophysiologist at Seattle Children’s Hospital and University of Washington Medical Center, devised a way to help surgeons practice before performing challenging procedures. Seslar worked with Seattle materials engineer Tom Burke, who developed a heart model that uses MRI or CT scans along with a 3D printer. The model, an exact replica of a patient's heart, even feels like a human heart to the touch.

Airway Support: 

Devices made with 3D printers can help keep children’s airways open. At University of Michigan C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital, splints created with this technology have helped save babies with a dangerous condition that causes the windpipe to periodically collapse, preventing normal breathing. So far, the 3D printed splints have been used with five young C.S. Mott patients.

Prenatal Care:

In a different case, 3D printing helped doctors at C.S. Mott Children’s determine the delivery method for an unborn baby. An ultrasound revealed a facial lump with potential to prevent the baby from breathing after birth. With an MRI image done in the womb, the 3D printer produced a model of the head and face. Fortunately, as described in the November issue of Pediatrics, the model showed the baby was not at risk and could be delivered by a routine C-section, instead of a more-complex surgery to create an airway. 

Tablets:

When a person with epilepsy can’t swallow pills, or a child resists taking medicine to prevent seizures, it’s a problem. In August, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a new tablet made with 3-D printer technology. The product, called Spritam, contains the anti-seizure medication levetiracetam. The difference is in the tablet, which allows the medication to quickly disperse with a sip of liquid before swallowing. Jennifer Zieverink, senior director of alliance management for Aprecia Pharmaceuticals, says Spritam is expected to go on the market in early 2016.