by
Thomas Dworetzky, Contributing Reporter | April 20, 2017
Mott teams have used 3-D printing for almost six years, creating low-cost models based on CT scan data.
And in December, 2016, Mount Sinai Health System announced that 3-D printing services
were being made available to its clinicians and researchers. The collaboration, called Medical Modeling Core, allows clinicians to discuss and order 3-D models for their surgical cases.
This marked the first time Mount Sinai clinicians could access models specific to each patient. This allows for better planning and trial runs for surgeries – and facilitates discussions of procedures with patients.
Beyond models for education and practice,
Mayo Clinic researchers reported in a study published in the journal
Tissue Engineering that they had developed a 3-D-printed bioabsorbable scaffold that can reconstruct ruptured anterior cruciate ligaments in the knee, and deliver a protein that promotes bone regeneration.
They coated the scaffolds with a synthetic bone mineral and delivered radiolabeled rhBMP-2 to four different experimental groups. Those groups included poly microspheres only, microspheres and collagen, collagen only and saline only.
They found that the microsphere delivery groups had a smaller burst release, and released a smaller percentage of rhBMP-2 over 32 days than the collagen- and saline-only groups.
"This work is a good example of the fusion of technologies — controlled release drug delivery and 3-D printing," Dr. Peter C. Johnson, co-editor-in-chief of Tissue Engineering, said in a statement.
Back to HCB News
