Medical AM
The medical additive manufacturing sector – which is starting now to include some areas of bioprinting – is today one of the largest adopters of 3D printing technologies for the production of consumer-targeted, end-use items, including prosthetics and orthotics, implants, devices and physical models.
In this month’s AM Focus on medical additive manufacturing, we are also going to focus specifically on the Dental Additive Manufacturing segment, which is a key area for the use of additive manufacturing across healthcare industries, in terms of hardware sales, material sales (especially – but not limited to – photopolymers) and numbers of parts produced (including models, dental trays, surgical guides, temporaries, crowns and implants).
We are going to hear from some of the large companies and innovative startups that have taken the possibilities offered by AM in various healthcare fields to new heights and built this sector into what can already be described as a multi-billion dollar opportunity.
The use of 3D printing technologies extends well beyond 3D printed implants. Surgical guides and pre-surgical models are widespread, so much so that they can, in a way, be compared to the broad adoption of AM for prototyping and tooling in the industrial manufacturing arena.
Leading AM hardware manufacturers, such as 3D Systems, EnvisionTEC, EOS and SLM Solutions, along with leading global service providers like Oerlikon, Jabil and Materialise, are investing heavily to develop both medical and dental AM applications. Medical product powerhouses like Stryker, DePuy Synthes, Zimmer Biomet (these two merged in 2015), and Smith & Nephew, are conducting R&D with AM for a range of innovative devices. Stryker was among the earliest adopters along with medium size international firm Lima Corporate.
The list of orthopedic contract manufacturers offering AM production services today is growing rapidly, with 3dpbm’s Index listing nearly 50 manufacturers of varying sizes. Some of these companies have been utilizing AM in a significant manner for more than a decade and are beginning to look beyond just the design and production of existing implant types in titanium using additive manufacturing.
While the benefits of AM technologies for personalized medicine and more efficient surgical practices are well documented, several hurdles still exist that are limiting a more widespread adoption of these key technologies in hospitals and medical practices. Several of these hurdles are inherent to AM technologies and related material availability, however, the biggest challenges result from a general lack of awareness and skepticism, resulting in a slow pace of adoption.
Today, significant strides are being taken—mainly in the private segment—toward the development of advanced polymers, metals and ceramics fit for implantation in humans. The private dental segment is going through a full-size boom in the adoption of AM technologies and processes. With this month’s AM Focus we hone in on the latest advancements and take a look at the upcoming opportunities for medical AM.
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Singapore to house new healthcare 3D printing R&D lab
Patients are expected to benefit from healthcare innovations, such as customized medical devices and implants, thanks to a joint R&D lab specializing in 3D printing that is being set up…
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Patients receive first off-the-shelf 3D printed synthetic bone grafts
According to Desktop Health, the production-grade medical 3D printing sub-brand of Desktop Metal, the first patients have been treated with CMFlex, an off-the-shelf 3D printed synthetic bone graft product developed…
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Stratasys partners with Siemens Healthineers to advance medical imaging
Stratasys, a leader in polymer 3D printing solutions, has partnered with Siemens Healthineers to carry out a landmark research project designed to develop new state-of-the-art solutions for the advancement of…
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Materialise introduces Mimics Flow Case Management
Materialise, a leading 3D printing service provider for the medical industry, has introduced Mimics Flow Case Management, a case management solution for hospital point-of-care 3D printing labs. The new offering…
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3D Systems receives FDA clearance for NextDent Base
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has provided 510(k) clearance for 3D Systems’ NextDent Base material that is intended for the manufacturing of denture bases to support artificial teeth to…
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Frontier Bio’s 3D printed blood vessels could replace animal testing
Frontier Bio Corporation, an innovative tissue engineering company, has unveiled a transformative method designed to fabricate living human blood vessels – setting the stage for a radical shift in medical…
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3D Systems’ technology enables ground-breaking cranial surgeries
A patient-specific 3D printed cranial implant, produced using 3D Systems’ point-of-care technologies, was successfully used in a cranioplasty at the University Hospital Basel, in Switzerland. Under the leadership of Prof.…
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SprintRay appoints Jessie Zhang as new Chief Financial Officer
SprintRay, a leading innovator in dental 3D printing technology, has appointed Jessie Zhang as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer. Zhang brings over 20 years of experience in finance and…
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CurifyLabs launches 3D printable Pharma Inks
CurifyLabs, a Finnish healthtech company, has launched its GMP (good manufacturing practice) produced Pharma Inks for 3D printable medicines – making it one of the first companies to offer the…