How biocompatible 3D printing is changing healthcare
Gaurav Manchanda, director of healthcare at Formlabs, explains why the future of medicine relies on a responsive, flexible, and agile healthcare system, and how biocompatible materials help get us there.
Over the past six months, 3D printing proved its value by producing in-demand medical supplies like PPE and COVID-19 test swabs. The responsiveness of the industry alleviated some of the major shortages the healthcare community faced in the fight against COVID-19. The scalability and versatility of the technology will continue to serve the healthcare industry long after the pandemic ends. Part of the long-term staying power of the technology is its ability to print with biocompatible materials - plastics that can interact safely with the human body. Resins that are produced in ISO 13485 certified and FDA-registered facilities, and tested for biocompatibility and sterilisation compatibility can enable hospitals to reduce risk and increase agility in the medical supply chain while improving patient care for years to come.
How biocompatible materials are being used today
- Implant Moulds: Surgeons and radiologists at University of Michigan printed sterilisable 3D printed moulds to customise the shape of commercially available absorbable orbital implants. Surgical repair of an isolated orbital fracture requires anatomically accurate implant shape and placement. The researchers found that use of the 3D printed moulds reduced operating room time by almost 50%.
- Implant Sizing: Mayo Clinic surgeons utilised a 3D printed fixation tray to confirm adequate fit and orientation of reconstructive segments prior to surgery. The tray was printed to exact patient specifications using biocompatible resin. The tray aided in alignment and stabilisation of the fibular segments while also providing patient-specific anatomic references for indexing of bony and soft tissue components.
- Cut / Drill Guides: Researchers have found that patient-specific guides printed with biocompatible resin can significantly improve the accuracy of glenoid pin placement compared with the standard guides for total shoulder arthroplasty.
- Emergency Response: The COVID-19 pandemic exposed risks in medical supply chains that were disrupted for much of the spring and may be at greater risk if the pandemic worsens as predicted this winter. 3D printing emerged as a critical tool in the pandemic because the materials needed to create PPE components, test swabs, ventilator components, and other items in short supply could be designed and produced locally. Biocompatible materials enabled these materials to be developed, tested, validated, and used on patients quickly.
Diversifying biocompatible materials - why it matters
Diversifying the medical resins available to the medical community enables researchers, surgeons, radiologists, and beyond to provide patients with personalised, precision healthcare. Having access to a variety of materials that are capable of being used for patient contact provides medical users with greater versatility when creating devices that move healthcare forward.
Formlabs recently introduced new materials specifically for the healthcare community: BioMed Clear and BioMed Amber. Both are biocompatible, sterilisable using several sterilisation modalities, and made in a controlled, ISO 13485 certified facility. BioMed Clear Resin is a strong, hard resin for biocompatible applications requiring long-term skin, mucosal membrane, or breathing gas pathway contact. BioMed Amber Resin is a rigid material for biocompatible applications requiring long-term skin or short-term mucosal membrane contact. Both of these materials can be used for surgical planning and implant sizing tools, implant guides and drilling templates, and research and development.
Looking forward
The future of medicine in this new era relies on a responsive, flexible, and agile medical supply network that can respond to emerging crises with minimal disruption and also provide enhanced, personalised, efficient care during “normal” times. A health system or hospital equipped with 3D printers that utilise an assortment of biocompatible materials would empower this kind of innovation on a meaningful scale. From patient-specific surgical guides to emergency response items like PPE, 3D printers with biocompatible resins enable a range of innovative applications, enabling solutions-oriented healthcare leaders to improve clinical outcomes, personalise medical treatments, and mitigate unnecessary costs.