Extreme Tech
LOUISVILLE, Ky.— Surgeons in Louisville, Kentucky have successfully used a 3D-printed model of a heart to study the heart defect of a 14 month-old boy and save his life. According to surgeon Erie Austin, Roland Lian Cung Bawi’s heart didn’t have a single problem — it had multiple defects, many of which were difficult to see precisely, even with modern medical imaging. Standard procedure in such cases is to explore and repair the damage during the surgery itself, but Austin had a different idea. Two dimensional scans of the tissue were difficult to analyze — but maybe a 3D model would be easier to work with.
The Kosair Children’s Hospital physician turned to the University of Louisville’s engineering school for help and was able to secure the use of a MakerBot 3D printer. With the 2D CT data turned into a 3D model and blown up to twice the normal size, it was far easier for the medical team to see the problems they were dealing with. Roland was born with a hole in his heart, with a deformed aorta and pulmonary artery. Because the heart must be stopped for surgery, the timing is critical — not being able to see an organ until you open the patient up means less time for doctors to find and repair damage.
The use of a 3D model for a pediatric heart surgery is a first for KY, but it’s not the first time 3D printers have been used to create models of surgical procedures. According to Tim Gornet, manager of the University of Louisville’s Rapid Prototyping Lab, the engineering school has already worked with doctors to create models of tumors and spinal defects. The total cost of printing up the model on a MakerBot? About $600.
Read full story: Surgeons use 3D-printed heart to save a child’s life, study heart defect