3D PRINTING IN PEDIATRIC ORTHOPEDICS – THE NEW GENERATION OF PREOPERATIVE PLANNING IN THE FIELD OF PEDIATRIC ORTHOPEDICS

The evolution of modern medicine, in its continuous developing process, is highly connected with the progress achieved in the medical branch of technology. Regarding the surgical specialties, the technological progress breakthroughs may determine the appearance of new diagnosis techniques, but also shape innovative treatments, leading to superior therapeutic results. In the surgical treatment as a whole, an essential role is played by the Medical Imagistics. They either offer the much-needed visual support in order to reach an accurate diagnosis, or guide the surgeon in choosing a certain type of intervention. The importance of Imagistics is indisputable. It has also been proven so in intraoperatory guidance and monitoring the patient in post-surgery. In the evolution of medical Imagistics, after the transition to digital imaging, followed by graphic 3D reconstructions based on CT and MRI data, we find ourselves contemporary with a new turning point announcing a technological revolution: the transition from virtual 3D models to tangible 3D replica. Since the beginning, the 3D printing technology has been of great importance to the field of medical research and, once the technique gained popularity, it became a modern tool for many medical specialties, in particular for cranio-maxillofacial surgery, orthopedics, oncology, neurosurgery. The 3D printing technology managed to transgress dated barriers by facilitating the manufacturing of implants or implement new treatments in regenerative medicine. The purpose of this original paper is to present our 3D printing work protocol and general conclusions after 5 years of implementing 3D printing in pediatric orthopedics.