Information and news about China 3D print enterprises, 3-D print technology trend setters, consumer electronics, gadgets, geek stories, videos and photos about product reviews, fashion design, lifestyle and international tech events from China Daily and China Daily website.

    Printed bones

    Updated: 2013-08-14 07:40
    By Liu Zhihua (China Daily)

     Printed bones

    A 3-D printed medical implant is displayed at Peking University Third Hospital in Beijing. More than 50 patients have used dozens of such implants. Photos by Zhu Xingxin / China Daily

     Printed bones

    The 3-D printed artificial vertebral bodies are used in human bodies for the first time in the world.

    Peking University Third Hospital has recently announced that its new 3-D printed orthopedic implants have produced good results in clinical trials. Liu Zhihua takes a closer look at the new technology.

    Using a printer to produce medical implants, body parts and living organs may sound like science fiction, but it is not.

    Scientists in a few countries, such as the United States, have used 3-D printing, a process of laying down successive layers of material in different shapes to make a three-dimensional solid object, according to a digital model.

    The 3-D objects are used in three ways: for surgery simulation, to produce lifesaving medical implants and artificial body parts, and to create living tissues and organs for drug testing.

    In China, Peking University Third Hospital recently announced its orthopedics department had produced a new type of orthopedic implants using a 3-D printer. The implants have produced good results during clinical trials.

    "We started the clinical trial to test those implants last year, and all the patients participating in the trial are recovering well," says Liu Zhongjun, director with the department.

    Cooperating with a Beijing medical device company that owns an imported 3-D printer, the hospital has produced dozens of hip replacements and artificial vertebral bodies. To date, more than 50 volunteer patients have tried the implants.

    The test is the first time that 3-D printed artificial vertebral bodies are used in human bodies in the medical world, although artificial vertebral bodies have been used in orthopedic surgeries for years, Liu says.

    The material is nothing new. The hospital uses titanium powder to print, a special metal that has been applied to make body implants for decades.

    But the shapes of the 3-D products are very different from traditional ones, in a positive sense, Liu says.

    Orthopedic implants are widely used for patients suffering from bone damage caused by injuries or diseases. They are inserted into joints and bones to restore normal functions, such as spine implants to help anchor the spine.

    But because of the limits of traditional manufacturing methods, the shapes of orthopedic implants are usually geometric patterns, and as a result, they cannot attach to bones firmly without additional cement, screws and fixing plates.

    Printed bones

    The 3-D printing, instead, is able to print titanium powder into any shapes, as long as the computer that controls the printer has a digital model to follow.

    "In another word, the 3-D printed orthopedic implants can match better with bones around them than traditional ones," Liu explains.

    Besides, the tiny pores of the new implants, another feature of the 3-D device, enable bones to grow into the implants, Liu adds.

    Liu's team launched the program in 2009. The hospital provided designing know-how, and the medical device company digitalized the design.

    In mid-2010, they started trials on sheep, and in 2012, the team got permission from health authorities for human trials.

    A woman surnamed Huang, became the first patient for the clinical trial.

    The 54-year-old Beijing resident had suffered from severe dizziness and stiffness in limbs caused by cervical spondylosis, a degenerative condition of the cervical spine.

    In September 2012, Huang heard about 3-D printing, and decided to use the new 3-D printed artificial vertebral bodies.

    "I see it as a good opportunity to experience new technology," she says.

    Within a few days after the surgery, Huang's symptoms disappeared. Her quarterly checks have shown positive recovery results.

    Lyu Chao, 32, is the latest patient to benefit from the technology.

    Before his surgery in July, his fingers, knees and lower legs often felt numb, and he could not walk or run fast.

    Lyu is the 20th volunteer. The hospital plans to have at least 22 volunteers before they apply to health authorities for clinical use, according to Liu Zhongjun, director of the clinical trial program.

    Liu says, "Producing medical devices through 3-D printing saves time and materials, and thus the cost will be lower than traditional methods."

    It also has the potential to custom-print medical implants, and create living organs for transplants, Liu adds.

    Qi Xiangdong, a senior cosmetic surgeon with General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Command, says Chinese hospitals have been trying to make use of 3-D printing since 2002.

    Many have applied the technology to create lifelike organ models so that doctors can simulate surgery procedures and pre-plan for complicated surgeries to enhance safety and efficiency, says Qi, who's a member of the standing committee of Digital Medicine Association under the Chinese Medical Association.

    In 2008, doctors in Qi's hospital successfully made a 3-D printing digital model for the upper part of a cervical vertebra, and hospitals in Shanghai have been using 3-D printing to help design cosmetic implants for several years, Qi says.

    But to make models for surgery simulation and preparation is different from creating living tissues and organs.

    "It is great that more Chinese hospitals manage to develop 3-D technology-related medical solutions for patients," Qi says. "With the technology, doctors can provide better treatment to patients."

    Contact the writer at liuzhihua@chinadaily.com.cn.

    (China Daily 08/14/2013 page19)

     
    8.03K
     
    亚洲真人无码永久在线| 亚洲日韩精品无码一区二区三区| 中文字幕av在线| 亚洲日韩v无码中文字幕| 国产精品久久久久无码av | 亚洲乱码中文字幕手机在线| 亚洲自偷自偷偷色无码中文| 国产成人一区二区三中文 | 最近2018中文字幕在线高清下载| 一本色道无码道DVD在线观看| 中文无码一区二区不卡αv| 亚洲日韩中文无码久久| 中文在线天堂网WWW| 日韩精品无码一本二本三本| 亚洲av中文无码| 午夜亚洲av永久无码精品| 中文字幕丰满乱孑伦无码专区| 久久精品人妻中文系列| 四虎成人精品无码| 亚洲伊人久久综合中文成人网 | 中文字幕人妻丝袜乱一区三区| 97久久精品无码一区二区| 无码精品人妻一区二区三区人妻斩| 高清无码v视频日本www| 日本欧美亚洲中文| 久久精品一区二区三区中文字幕| 人妻少妇精品视中文字幕国语| 永久免费无码日韩视频| 亚洲av中文无码| 中文无码精品一区二区三区| 中文日韩亚洲欧美字幕| 日韩va中文字幕无码电影| 中文字幕在线无码一区二区三区 | 亚洲高清无码综合性爱视频| 精品无码三级在线观看视频| 国产高清无码二区| 97精品人妻系列无码人妻| 久久久久亚洲av成人无码电影| 无码AV一区二区三区无码| 中文字字幕在线中文乱码不卡| 中文无码精品一区二区三区|