(Keynote) 3D-Printed Biodegradable Implants for Orthopedic Applications

Abstract

This study developed a new biodegradable polymeric cage using 3D printing technique to convert corticocancellous bone chips into a structured strut graft for treating segmental bone defects. A biodegradable truncated-pyramid cage was designed and manufactured to serve as the bone graft. Commercially available PLA filaments with a diameter of 3.0 mm were used as the material for the bone cage 3D printing. The cage was fabricated using a fused-deposition-modeling (FDM) type 3D printer with a printing resolution of 200 mm. The experimental results show that higher leg length ratios and 3-point bending strengths demonstrated improved final bony ingrowths within the bone defects for rabbits implanted with the 3D printed cages. The present experimental results indicate that using 3D printing PLA can be remodeled into a cage of any geometric shape to fill the bone. With this 3D printed cage, the orthopedic surgeons will be able to convert small corticocancellous bone chips into a structured bone graft to avail both the osteoconductive and mechanical properties. Through this bone graft converting technique, the surgeons can merge different sources of bone graft to serve as an adequate strut bone graft for the treatment of large bone defects without experiencing donor site morbidity and graft resource limitations.