scholarly journals Rapid high-fidelity contour shaping of titanium mesh implants for cranioplasty defects using patient-specific molds created with low-cost 3D printing: A case series

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 288
Author(s):  
Michael Kinsman ◽  
Zaid Aljuboori ◽  
Tyler Ball ◽  
Haring Nauta ◽  
Maxwell Boakye

Background: Cranioplasty is a neurosurgical procedure to repair skull defects. Sometimes, the patients’ bone flap cannot be used for various reasons. Alternatives include a custom polyether ether ketone (PEEK) implant or titanium mesh; both incur an additional cost. We present a technique that uses a 3D printer to create a patient- specific 3D model used to mold a titanium mesh preoperatively. Case Description: We included three patients whose bone flap could not be used. We collected the patients’ demographics, cost, and time data for implants and the 3D printer. The patients’ computed tomography DICOM images were used for 3D reconstruction of the cranial defect. A 3D printer (Flashforge, CA) was used to print a custom mold of the defect, which was used to shape the titanium mesh. All patients had excellent cosmetic results with no complications. The time required to print a 3D model was ~ 6 h and 45 min for preoperative shaping of the titanium implant. The intraoperative molding (IOM) of a titanium mesh needed an average of 60 min additional operative room time which incurred $4000. The average cost for PEEK and flat titanium mesh is $12,600 and $6750. Our method resulted in $4000 and $5500 cost reduction in comparison to flat mesh with IOM and PEEK implant. Conclusion: 3D printing technology can create a custom model to shape a titanium mesh preoperatively for cranioplasty. It can result in excellent cosmetic results and significant cost reduction in comparison to other cranioplasty options.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Yue-Cheng Chen ◽  
Jacob Skewes ◽  
Ryan Daley ◽  
Maria Ann Woodruff ◽  
Nicholas John Rukin

Abstract BackgroundThree-dimensional (3D) printing is a promising technology but the limitations are often poorly understood. We compare different 3D printingmethods with conventional machining techniques in manufacturing meatal urethral dilators which were recently removed from the Australian market. MethodsA prototype dilator was 3D printed vertically orientated on a low cost fused deposition modelling (FDM) 3D printer in polylactic acid (PLA) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). It was also 3D printed horizontally orientated in ABS on a high-end FDM 3D printer with soluble support material, as well as on a SLS 3D printer in medical nylon. The dilator was also machined in stainless steel using a lathe. All dilators were tested mechanically in a custom rig by hanging calibrated weights from the handle until the dilator snapped. ResultsThe horizontally printed ABS dilator experienced failure at a greater load than the vertically printed PLA and ABS dilators respectively (503g vs 283g vs 163g, p < 0.001). The SLS nylon dilator and machined steel dilator did not fail. The steel dilator is most expensive with a quantity of five at 98 USD each, but this decreases to 30 USD each for a quantity of 1000. In contrast, the cost for the SLS dilator is 33 USD each for five and 27 USD each for 1000. ConclusionsAt the current time 3D printing is not a replacement for conventional manufacturing. 3D printing is best used for patient-specific parts, prototyping or manufacturing complex parts that have additional functionality that cannot otherwise beachieved.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 371-380
Author(s):  
Sally Cahyati ◽  
◽  
Haris Risqy Aziz

Rapid Prototyping (RP) is a manufacturing process that produces a 3D model CAD to be a real product rapidly by using additive manufacturing technology. In this case, the product will print layer by layer uses a 3D printer machine. The 3D printer requires slicer software to convert CAD data into data that a 3D printer machine can read. Research is done to analyze the effect of three kinds of slicer software on 3D printing objects on the accuracy and surface roughness of the product. The 3D model CAD is sliced using three different slicer software, namely Ideamaker, Repetier Host, and Cura. The slice model result from each slicer will be printed on a 3D printer machine with the same process parameters to be compared. Then the product's dimensional and surface roughness will be measured to determine the effect of each slicer on product quality. The best quality of the product reflected the most suitable slicer software for the 3D printing machine that used. The best results achieved by Cura slicer because it has resulted in small dimensional deviations (max 0,0308±0,0079) and stabile high surface roughness of the product (max 1,585+059).


2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 36-46
Author(s):  
Bharoto Yekti

Teknologi 3D printing sudah mulai banyak digunakan di industri animasi terutama animasi stop motion. Penggunaan 3D printer untuk animasi stop motion paling banyak digunakan pada teknik replacement animation. Perangkat lunak yang digunakan untuk membuat aset animasi stop motion tidak terbatas pada jenis perangkat lunak untuk animasi 3 Dimensi (3D) saja, Teknik 3D digital sculpting juga dapat digunakan untuk membentuk 3D model yang kemudian bisa diproses menjadi aset untuk animasi stop motion dengan 3D printer. Penelitian ini membandingkan pembuatan model 3Dimensi yang menggunakan metode polygon modeling (memakai perangkat lunak Softimage) dengan pembuatan 3D model yang menggunakan metode digital sculpting (memakai perangkat lunak Zbrush). Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui kelemahan serta kelebihan metode poly modeling dan digital sculpting untuk membuat 3D model, dari proses modeling awal sampai ke tahap converting file perangkat lunak native menjadi file .stl yang siap diproses dengan 3D printer. Key words : 3d modeling, 3d printing, Stop motion, animationEngine.


Electronics ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (9) ◽  
pp. 1456
Author(s):  
Rifky Ismail ◽  
Rilo Berdin Taqriban ◽  
Mochammad Ariyanto ◽  
Ali Tri Atmaja ◽  
Sugiyanto ◽  
...  

This study aims to invent a new, low-cost, and faster method of prosthetic socket fabrication, especially in Indonesia. In this paper, the photogrammetry with the 3D printing method is introduced as the new applicative way for transradial prosthetic making. Photogrammetry is used to retrieve a 3D model of the amputated hand stump using a digital camera. A digital camera is used for photogrammetry technique and the resulting 3D model is printed using a circular 3D printer with Polylactic acid (PLA) material. The conventional casting socket fabrication method was also conducted in this study as a comparison. Both prosthetic sockets were analyzed for usability, and sectional area conformities to determine the size deviation using the image processing method. This study concludes that the manufacturing of transradial prosthetic sockets incorporating the photogrammetry technique reduces the total man-hour production. Based on the results, it can be implied that the photogrammetry technique is a more efficient and economical method compared to the conventional casting method. The 3D printed socket resulting from the photogrammetry method has a 5–19% area deviation to the casting socket but it is still preferable and adjustable for the transradial amputee when applied to the stump of the remaining hand.


Author(s):  
Chetan More

3D printing gives life to all your best projects. Do you know that it could also give life to your picture? Yes, you read it right, if you have a picture of it then you can turn it into a 3D model and 3D print it! From 1 to 100 hundred pictures, several effective solutions are available to help you convert photos into a 3D model.


Author(s):  
R. Kaufmann ◽  
C. J. Zech ◽  
M. Takes ◽  
P. Brantner ◽  
F. Thieringer ◽  
...  

AbstractThree-dimensional (3D) printing of vascular structures is of special interest for procedure simulations in Interventional Radiology, but remains due to the complexity of the vascular system and the lack of biological tissue mimicking 3D printing materials a technical challenge. In this study, the technical feasibility, accuracy, and usability of a recently introduced silicone-like resin were evaluated for endovascular procedure simulations and technically compared to a commonly used standard clear resin. Fifty-four vascular models based on twenty-seven consecutive embolization cases were fabricated from preinterventional CT scans and each model was checked for printing success and accuracy by CT-scanning and digital comparison to its original CT data. Median deltas (Δ) of luminal diameters were 0.35 mm for clear and 0.32 mm for flexible resin (216 measurements in total) with no significant differences (p > 0.05). Printing success was 85.2% for standard clear and 81.5% for the novel flexible resin. In conclusion, vascular 3D printing with silicone-like flexible resin was technically feasible and highly accurate. This is the first and largest consecutive case series of 3D-printed embolizations with a novel biological tissue mimicking material and is a promising next step in patient-specific procedure simulations in Interventional Radiology.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob Skewes ◽  
Michael Y. Chen ◽  
David Forrestal ◽  
Nicholas J. Rukin ◽  
Maria A. Woodruff

Patients often opt for implantation of testicular prostheses following orchidectomy for cancer or torsion. Recipients of testicular prostheses report issues regarding firmness, shape, size, and position, aspects of which relate to current limitations of silicone materials used and manufacturing methods for soft prostheses. We aim to create a 3D printable testicular prosthesis which mimics the natural shape and stiffness of a human testicle using a lattice infill structure. Porous testicular prostheses were engineered with relative densities from 0.1 to 0.9 using a repeating cubic unit cell lattice inside an anatomically accurate testicle 3D model. These models were printed using a multi-jetting process with an elastomeric material and compared with current market prostheses using shore hardness tests. Additionally, standard sized porous specimens were printed for compression testing to verify and match the stiffness to human testicle elastic modulus (E-modulus) values from literature. The resulting 3D printed testicular prosthesis of relative density between 0.3 and 0.4 successfully achieved a reduction of its bulk compressive E-modulus from 360 KPa to a human testicle at 28 Kpa. Additionally, this is the first study to quantitatively show that current commercial testicular prostheses are too firm compared to native tissue. 3D printing allows us to create metamaterials that match the properties of human tissue to create customisable patient specific prostheses. This method expands the use cases for existing biomaterials by tuning their properties and could be applied to other implants mimicking native tissues.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Yue-Cheng Chen ◽  
Jacob Skewes ◽  
Ryan Daley ◽  
Maria Ann Woodruff ◽  
Nicholas John Rukin

Abstract Background Three-dimensional (3D) printing is a promising technology in medicine. Low-cost 3D printing options are accessible but the limitations are often poorly understood. We aim to compare fused deposition modelling (FDM), the most common and low cost 3D printing technique, with selective laser sintering (SLS) and conventional machining techniques in manufacturing meatal urethral dilators which were recently removed from the Australian market.Methods A meatal urethral dilator was designed using computer-aided design (CAD). The dilator was 3D printed vertically orientated on a low cost FDM 3D printer in polylactic acid (PLA) and acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS). It was also 3D printed horizontally orientated in ABS on a high-end FDM 3D printer with soluble support material, as well as on a SLS 3D printer in medical nylon. The dilator was also machined in medical stainless steel using a lathe. All dilators were tested mechanically in a custom rig by hanging calibrated weights from the handle until the dilator snapped.Results The horizontally printed ABS dilator experienced failure at a greater load than the vertically printed PLA and ABS dilators respectively (503g vs 283g vs 163g, p < 0.001). The SLS nylon dilator did not fail but began to bend and deformed at around 5,000g of pressure. The steel dilator did not bend even at 10,000g of pressure. The cost per dilator is highest for the steel dilator if assuming a low quantity of five at 98 USD, but this decreases to 30 USD for a quantity of 1000. In contrast, the cost for the SLS dilator is 33 USD for a quantity of five but relatively unchanged at 27 for a quantity of 1000.Conclusions SLS and conventional machining created clinically functional meatal dilators but low-cost FDM printing could not. We suggest that at the current time 3D printing is not a replacement for conventional manufacturing techniques which are still the most reliable way to produce large quantities of parts with a simple geometry such as the meatal dilator. 3D printing is best used for patient-specific parts, prototyping or manufacturing complex parts that have additional functionality that cannot be achieved with conventional machining methods.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pieter De Backer ◽  
Charlotte Allaeys ◽  
Charlotte Debbaut ◽  
Roel Beelen

Abstract Background Carotid Artery Stenting (CAS) is increasingly being used in selected patients as a minimal invasive approach to carotid endarterectomy. Despite the abundance of performed endovascular treatments, the concept of stent-placement is still unclear to many patients. Furthermore, visual feedback on stent-deployment is difficult to obtain as it is always performed under radiographic feedback. Three-Dimensional (3D) printing might tackle both challenges. A particular use case of Point-of-Care 3D Printing is the pretreatment printing of vascular anatomy in support of endovascular procedures. Purpose This study reports the first use of a low-cost patient-specific 3D printed model for CAS education to both experienced surgeons and patients. Methodology An angio computed tomography (CT) scan was segmented and converted to STL format using Mimics inPrint™ software. The carotid arteries were bilaterally truncated to fit the whole model on a Formlabs 2 printer without omitting the internal vessel diameter. Next, this model was offset using a 1 mm margin. A ridge was modelled on the original vessel anatomy which was subsequently subtracted from the offset model in order to obtain a deroofed 3D model. All vessels were truncated as to facilitate flow on the inside. Results Date-expired carotid artery stents were successfully deployed inside the vessel. The deroofing allows for clear visualization of the bottlenecks and characteristics of CAS deployment and positioning, including foreshortening and tapering of the stent. This low-cost 3D model provides insights in stent deployment and positioning, and allows for patient-specific procedure planning. Conclusion Printing patient-specific 3D models preoperatively could assist in accurate patient selection, a better preoperative planning and case-specific training. Furthermore, this 3D model also allows for better patient education and informed consent. However, more research is warranted to evaluate the added value of these models.


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