Is 3D Printing the Future of Orthopaedics? Do Printed Cages and Bones Really Work?

Abstract

Dealing with segmental bone loss in the lower extremity continues to be a challenging problem for both patient and surgeon. Conditions such as avascular necrosis, comminuted open injuries, orthopaedic tumors, and diabetes continue to make quality of life subpar for the patient and often make activities of daily living difficult. The advent of 3-dimensional (3D) printing has changed design and manufacturing processes in many industries, including the medical device space. Patients and surgeons now have access to 3D-printed wedges, cages, and bones that can allow the extremity surgeon to fill the void that was once left for bone transport, multiple segment arthrodesis, and vascularized flaps. Because of the flexibility that 3D printing provides, many of these implants can be patient specific with the shapes and contours of the patients’ native bone taken into account. While the peer-reviewed literature on the long-term outcomes is limited due to the new technology, there is significant reason to believe that these technologies will assist surgeons for the foreseeable future. In this roundtable discussion, we speak with two talented surgeons who have a wide range of experience in printed orthopaedic devices. They will provide us an update on their user experience and tips and pearls for using this exciting technology.