Tag: 3D printing
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Sensors 3D printed directly on lungs, heart could be used with surgical robots to diagnose, monitor disease
Michael McAlpine and University of Minnesota colleagues used 3D printing and motion capture technology to print electronic sensors directly on organs that are expanding and contracting, such as the heart and lungs. This could be used to diagnose and monitor the lungs of patients with COVID-19. This builds on the team’s technique which enabled the…
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3D printed, custom fitted airway stents
Cleveland Clinic physician Tom Gildea used CT scans and visualization software to develop 3D printed silicone stents used to open the airways of patients with tumors, inflammation, trauma or other masses. The technology has now been approved by the FDA. Standard airway stents come in a limited number of sizes and shapes and are generally…
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3D printed bioreactor-grown bone for craniofacial surgery
Antonios Mikos, Alexander Tatara, and Rice colleagues are using a 3D printed mold, attached to a rib, to grow live bones to repair craniofacial injuries. Stem cells and blood vessels from the rib infiltrate scaffold material and replace it with natural, custom-fit bone. Current reconstruction methods use a patient’s own bone graft tissues, harvested from the lower…
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Miniature, lab-engineered “organs” create “body on a chip”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-24125678 The US Department of Defense and Wake Forest University are developing miniature human organs with 3D printers to enable better drug testing. The 2-inch “body on a chip” would be a testing ground for understanding how the human body might react to dangerous diseases, chemical warfare agents and new drugs intended to defend against biological or chemical…
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Crowdfunded, 3D printed “Robohands” provide dexterity to children with out fingers
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/06/18/191279201/3-d-printer-brings-dexterity-to-children-with-no-fingers A Robohand is a customized, fitted set of mechanical fingers that open and close to grasp things based on the motion of the wrist. When the wrist folds and contracts, the cables attaching the fingers to the base structure cause the fingers to curl. Nearly all the parts of a Robohand are 3D printed…