Precisely fitting bone implants from the printer
Monday, December 3, 2018 - 10:30
in Health & Medicine
Cancerous tumors, infections or bad fractures can make it necessary to surgically remove bones and insert implants in their place. In collaboration with European partners, Fraunhofer researchers have now developed a technique with which bone implants that are precisely fitting, stable and variable in dimensions can be 3-D printed from a special plastic. The secret lies in the printing process, where the individual layers are treated with a cold plasma in order to improve the bonding of bone-forming cells.