Four-dimensional Printing: An Evolution in Making

Abstract

There are promising applications of four-dimensional (4D) printing in the medical field. The need is to identify the research status and explore where this new set of technologies effectively can be deployed. Research articles are searched from Scopus by keywords as ‘4D printing’, ‘medical’, ‘dental’ and undertaken a bibliometric analysis of the identified papers. This study states that 4D printing is the latest technology that creates innovation and addresses complex medical problems. The paper briefly describes the 4D printing and details its difference from three-dimensional (3D) printing technology. The paper identified that research is carried out on 4D printing, but decidedly less publication is available in the medical field reporting the application of this technology. The main limitation is that it requires extensive investment and support for transformation. 4D printing is to provide benefits to medical practitioners especially in the areas not covered by 3D printing technologies. 4D printing helps to create a 3D physical object by adding smart material layer by layer through computer-operated computer-aided design data. It adds a dimension of transformation over time where printed products are sensitive to parameters such as temperature, humidity and time. This technology can provide extensive support in the medical field, especially with better and smart medical implants, tools and devices. Now, doctors and researchers can explore with 4D printing technology to provide better service to the patient.