Son Helps Father Get a 3D Printed Face

Reconstructive Scientist scans son's face to 3D print a prosthesis for his dad (Photo Credit: 3Dprint.com) 

Anyone who has experienced facial scarring can appreciate the pain and embarrassment that often accompanies the disfigurement, no matter how minor.  After four relatively simple surgeries to reduce the scarring and improve the shape of my nose, I am still sensitive about how it looks - but then I read the following story in 3dprint.com which described the medical miracle of a man who got a new face - and lease on life - through 3D printing.  To say it put things into perspective would be an understatement...

“Every year, thousands of individuals are left with terrible deformities due to their courageous battles against cancer. This was the case for a 74-year-old man named Keith Londsdale who had started his battle again cancer all the way back in 1990, undergoing 45 different procedures to save his life against a very aggressive form of basal cell carcinoma.

When all was said and done Londsdale’s life was spared. However, he was left without an upper jaw bone, cheekbones, his nose, and his palate, and in their place was a gaping hole. Without the ability to properly speak, eat or drink, doctors sought out a solution to make this brave man’s life as normal as possible.”

Until recently, most prostheses have been functionally or cosmetically lacking.  (I remember a patient who had lost her lower jaw to disease, and she had a basic plastic cup that just sat where her jaw had been).   Now, 3D scanning, modeling and printing are achieving lifelike results that closely match the recipient's existing features.

Keith Londsdale is one such beneficiary of medical additive manufacturing.  His son, Scott, worked with Jason Watson, a Reconstructive Scientist at Nottinghams' Queen's Medical Center, to create a prosthetic that incorporated Scott's features to ensure a familial likeness.

“Watson had Scott come into the hospital where they 3D scanned his face. From the scans, a sophisticated computer algorithm created a 3D printable model, which the team at Queen’s Medical Centre was able to print out. Basically doctors now had a 3D printed physical replica of a portion of Scott’s face they then were able to copy in wax and create a mold from. From that mold they then created a silcone mask from Scott, which fit Keith’s face nearly perfectly.”

Imagine the day when such prostheses are bio printed using living skin cells.

RapidMade to Print 3D Prosthetic Hand

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Hi Tech Hand (http://phys.org/news/2013-10-future-d.html#nRlv)

In the field of 3D printing, medical advances have arguably received the most press, with good reason - 3D printed prosthesis are changing lives.  The London Science Museum is now featuring an exhibition that highlights one great example, a 3D prosthetic arm designed and manufactured by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council's Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Additive Manufacturing.  This prototype features "customised prosthetics with electronic moving parts and nerve endings, created by the research group at the University of Nottingham."

Unfortunately, the cost of high tech prosthesis like this is a serious drawback , especially when children are involved.  Kids need a medical device that won't cost an ar - well you know  the expression - their changing bodies require a less expensive alternative that can be replaced as needed to accommodate growth.

Version of McCarthy's Robo Hand RapidMade is Evaluating (http://laughingsquid.com/dad-makes-a-low-cost-3d-printed-prosthetic-hand-for-his-son/)

RapidMade is very excited to be partnering with a 13-year-old Oregonian who has a congenital amputation to customize, print and fit an inexpensive hand for him to evaluate.  Alex and his mom, Lori, visited us earlier in April to discuss the project and provide his measurements. 3D printing will allow us to size the prosthetic to match his hand instead of a "one size fits all" device. David, our engineer, has already begun printing parts and assessing design features. RapidMade hopes to make plastic prosthetic hands out of ABS plastic using fused deposition modelling (FDM) and Nylon using Selective Laser sintering (SLS) in order to better meet patients' specific needs for price and quality.   

We are grateful to Paul McCarthy who designed and shared the original version we are evaluating.  He and other designers have made their work available for free through open sourcing to drive down costs.  As 3D users already know, it is often the product design phase that is the most costly and time consuming, so to have a ready-to-print CAD file is an enormous benefit.

If this trial is successful, we hope to become part of a network that provides low-cost prosthesis to others who are similarly challenged.  Stay tuned for updates on our progress...