Affordable 3D-printed medical devices reach commercialization

Formlabs 3D printers are used to create medical prints [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

Accessibility and affordability of 3D printers allow small device companies to create and market personalized devices.

Gaurav Manchanda, Formlabs

Healthcare is becoming more efficient. Patients are starting to expect a personal approach. 3D printing isn’t a newly minted manufacturing technology, yet it’s reached an inflection point for bringing change in healthcare and dental applications.

3D printing used to be prohibitively expensive. It was only possible for the best-resourced medical centers or device manufacturers. These days 3D printers are more affordable and easily accessible. Medical providers and device manufacturers are now able to safely make novel, patient-specific parts that can be sterilized.

3D printing will become the preferred method of manufacturing medical devices such as implants, surgical guides and prosthetics. Manufacturers and medical device firms must be aware of the potential benefits of 3D printing for the commercialization and sale of end-use parts.

Healthcare: The 3D printing market is on the horizon

Medical products created with SLS 3D printing [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

3D printing is becoming more popular in the healthcare sector. This trend is expected grow as manufacturers and providers create personalized care plans, new medical devices, and better educate their patients. Technology is being developed to increase part production, deliver new material, and reduce the production time.

In order to advance additive manufacturing, healthcare leaders and 3D printer manufacturers are working together. Vizient listed the 3D printing company as a major purchasing organization (GPO). Other partnerships have accelerated the delivery life-changing medical devices and maintained regulatory compliance.

This industry support combines with technological advancements that allow for faster workflows and new applications. This will continue to advance 3D printing towards commercialization in healthcare. Materials are an important component of 3D printing’s commercialization.

BioMed resins are used to 3D print medical products [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

Biocompatible and sterilizable materials like BioMed Clear, BioMed white, and BioMed black resins are needed by healthcare providers and manufacturers. These materials are manufactured in an FDA-registered, ISO 13485 certified facility. They are suitable for use in applications that require contact with skin, blood or tissue. They’re also compatible with common solvent disinfection and sterilization methods. Designed with patient safety in mind, these SLA materials — and biocompatible nylon materials for an SLS printer — are critical for creating medical devices, surgical instruments, surgical guides, and new innovations in ground-breaking healthcare research.

By combining 3D printing technology with healthcare marketing, the industry will be able to achieve the ultimate goal of improving patient service sooner. Small and large medical manufacturing companies have begun to use 3D printing to make medical devices, prosthetics, implants, and dentures.

Small businesses already sell devices

Small firms are commercializing 3D-printed medical devices — including surgical instruments, inhalers, smart prosthetic hands, metabolic analyzer masks and more — and can show the path forward. 3D printing can be used to create new treatments and devices tailored to patients. It is also possible to prototype and manufacture them.

Novartis acquired Coalesce Product Development, a medical device company that uses 3D printing for the development of new and affordable drug delivery products such as inhalers or injectors for generic Inhalation Products. These devices are significantly cheaper than brand-name options that can go up to $380 per month.

Restor3d, another company, brings the advantages of 3D printing into surgery. In the United States, more than 132,000 anterior cervical discectomy procedures and fusions are performed each year using stainless steel instruments. These instruments were expensive and difficult to use. Restor3d utilizes the design freedom of 3D printing and continues improvement to transform how spine surgeons work and improve surgical care delivery. The company’s first 3D-printed, procedure-specific polymer instruments for foot and ankle and cervical spine implants were made from a combination of metal and 3D-printed polymer parts, benefitting hospitals with reduced sterilization and inventory costs.

The 3D-printed Tension Square [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

3D-printed parts have also been used in the medical device industry. Mychael Overstreet — a veteran, firefighter and paramedic — used 3D printing to create Tension Square, a portable device that holds a needle decompression catheter securely in place while preventing damaging kinking, folding or dislodgement and preventable deaths in the field due to pneumothorax or collapsed lungs. He had no engineering training and relied on 3D printing for testing and finalizing his design. This allowed him to experiment with a variety of materials in order to create a durable, long-lasting, precise, skin-safe, lightweight and durable design.

As the technology stack has become more accessible, these companies and innovators have succeeded in commercializing 3D-printed parts for end-use. Medical device companies will benefit from the collaboration within the industry to learn from these early successes and chart their own paths to commercialization. This will help improve patient outcomes, reduce costs, and increase efficiency.

3D printing allows for the design of medical devices

Formlabs 3D Printers [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

Utilizing 3D printing to create commercialized healthcare devices has become an attainable goal, but it’s not yet the norm. 3D printing design can be used by companies to create medical devices and precision healthcare at point-of-care.

Gaurav Manchanda, Formlabs’ director of medical market development, is Gaurav Manchanda. [Photo courtesy of Formlabs]

Gaurav Manchanda is the director of medical market development at Formlabs. He launched the medical division and oversees the advancement of 3D printing in healthcare. This involves combining clinically-validated 3D printing technology with in-house QA/RA expertise and affordable pricing. Manchanda oversees 3D printing market growth in priority segments such as medical devices and point-of-care orthotics and prosthetics. He also leads medical education and life sciences.

The opinions expressed in this post are the author’s only and do not necessarily reflect those of MedicalDesignandOutsourcing.com or its employees.