Artikel
Patient specific surgical implants and prosthesis made of 3D printed PEEK
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Veröffentlicht: | 6. Februar 2020 |
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Gliederung
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Objectives/Interrogation: Additive Manufacturing (AM) is rapidly gaining acceptance in the healthcare sector. Three-dimensional (3D) virtual surgical planning, fabrication of anatomical models and patient specific implants (PSI) are well-established processes in the surgical fields. Poly-ether-ether-ketone (PEEK) has been used, mainly in reconstructive surgeries as a reliable alternative to other alloplastic materials for the fabrication of PSI. Recently, it has become possible to fabricate PEEK PSI with Fused Filament Fabrication (FFF) technology. 3D printing of PEEK using FFF allows construction of almost any complex design geometries in a cost-effective manner, within a short time-frame, even in an in-house 3D printin setup.
Methods: The FFF 3D printer used in our research is a prototype of the Apium P220 (Apium Additive Technologies GmbH, Karlsruhe, Germany). Patient's data in DICOM format is processed in a medical modeling software program and a virtual 3D anatomical model is created. With further processing & designing, the PSI is constructed and exported as an STL file which is sent to the 3D printer for fabrication of PSI.
Results and Conclusions: 3D printed PEEK PSI have a smooth finish and were without any irregularities. No black-specks formation nor discoloration (improper crystallization) were detected in the test parts. All of the 3D printed parts passed a certified sterilization test without any deformation. The preliminary tests confirmed the feasibility of fabricating 3D printed PEEK PSI by FFF.