Bottom Line: It’s not sci-fi anymore…hip implants, hearing aids and more can now be created with the click of a mouse!
This may sound like something from a sci-fi movie, but everything from hip implants to hearing aids…and artificial arms to prescription pills can now be produced with a printer. And 3-D–printed organs are on the horizon!
Engineers and designers have been using 3-D printers for more than 25 years to make prototypes quickly and cheaply, but now 3-D printing is being used to revolutionize the medical field.
With 3-D printing, specialized printers don’t use ink. Instead, they lay down layer after layer of plastic, powders, liquefied metal or other materials, even living cells, until the desired object is complete—often in a few hours or less.
When Arizona State University first started producing 3-D medical models in 2009, only a few hospitals (such as Mayo Clinic) were using the technology. Today, more than 100 hospitals have their own 3-D labs or are farming out projects to 3-D contractors. The technology has evolved so quickly that the FDA recently issued guidelines for companies that produce medical products ranging from 3-D–printed tissues to surgical scaffolds for bone repair.
3-D printing is less expensive than traditional manufacturing for individualized parts because it’s fast and there’s little waste. Another advantage: 3-D products can be easily customized with a few clicks of a computer mouse.
There’s a good chance that you’re already benefiting from 3-D medical printing. For example, dental implants, hearing aids and prescription eyeglasses are often made this way. Other uses…
• Surgical planning. The unique properties of 3-D printing, particularly the ability to add one thin layer after another, have made it possible to create exact replicas of body parts and tissues—including the intricate networks of nerves and blood vessels. Surgeons facing a challenging procedure will sometimes use 3-D models—created from CT or MRI scans of the patient—to plan their approach.
Example: Surgery for congenital heart defects is geometrically challenging. With a customized model, surgeons can see the unique intricacies—including the location of the coronary blood vessels, which vary from patient to patient—before the surgery.
• Implants and prostheses. 3-D printing makes it possible to produce implants and artificial limbs that precisely match each patient—for a fraction of the cost of traditional implants/prostheses.
Examples: A group called Enabling the Future works with thousands of volunteers worldwide who use 3-D technology to create prosthetic arms and hands.
A printed 3-D prosthesis might cost as little as $50, compared with thousands of dollars for a conventional device. This is particularly helpful for families who can’t afford to replace prostheses when children quickly outgrow the old ones.
The majority of off-the-shelf hip implants used today are actually printed. Customized, patient-specific implants are the next step. Also, the surface roughness and natural porosity of bone can be recreated with 3-D technology so that the surrounding tissue grows into the implant (know as osseointegration), rather than just around it.
• Printed medications. This is now being done in research to improve drug production. And in 2015, the FDA approved the first 3-D–printed prescription drug, levetiracetam (Spritam), which is used for seizures. It’s only a matter of time before patients can pick up a variety of printed drugs at the pharmacy.
With 3-D drug production, a pharmacist could analyze a patient’s unique requirements—based on factors such as gender, age, race, drug response, etc.—before creating a customized dose and hitting the “print” button. And patients who have multiple chronic diseases could have their various medications printed in one tablet (or, at least, fewer tablets), which would provide convenience and could improve compliance.
• Customized splints to aid healing. In a widely publicized case, surgeons at University of Michigan took CT scans of an infant’s damaged trachea. Sophisticated software and a 3-D printer soon produced a supportive splint, which was wrapped around the trachea. The infant gradually recovered—and the splint, made from layers of biodegradable material, eventually disappeared on its own. This technology will soon be tested in a clinical trial.
Printing new organs is the big goal for researchers. Producing organs with 3-D technology made from the patient’s own cells would solve the problem of organ donor shortages and organ rejection. But it’s a daunting challenge because organs are thick, complicated structures—they contain multiple cell types and require intricate pathways that permit blood circulation and the movement of oxygen between tissues.
An important advance in this area, known as bioprinting, is still in the early stages. With bioprinting, researchers apply living cells to a 3-D–printed scaffold. It’s hoped that the cells will then multiply and grow to repair (or replace) damaged structures. For some types of cells, scaffolding isn’t necessary—the cells figure out on their own where to go. Possible uses: Skin transplants for burn victims…cartilage replacement for damaged joints…and the creation of complete organs.
Scientists have already produced printed skin…parts of a bladder…sheets of cardiac tissue that beat like a real heart…and functional liver tissue. It’s likely that complete, working organs—starting with relatively simple ones, such as a bladder—will be 3-D printed within the next five to 10 years. More complicated structures, such as kidneys and hearts, are probably a few decades away. Interim steps, such as replacing parts of a heart or coronary artery, could be accomplished soon.
