A 22 years old girl was suffering from a disease which results in the thickening of the skull, hence compressing the brain. According to Bon Verweij, the surgeon who performed the operation, the skull was 5 centimeters thick. “The brain was therefore under pressure, affecting her eyesight and coordination of movement,” he explains. Other critical brain functions were also in danger and threatened the life of the patient. Bon Verweij and his team therefore implemented a new skull which was entirely printed using a 3D printer, to save the life of this girl. This world’s first operation took place in UMC Utrecht and lasted for 23 hours.
“This implant not only has a cosmetic benefits, but it also enables the brain to work better as before,” says Bon Verweij. The operation took place there three months back, but the UMC Utrecht preferred to wait to be sure that the patient is doing well before the information is made public. “We now know that everything went well,” said Good. “The young girl has regained her eyesight and is back at work.”
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IXcz3OdHSHk[/youtube]
We are very impressed by this world’s first surgery of its type! In addition to that, in the future, this surgery can also be for bone cancer or or brain injury. Do you think that 3D printing will have a good impact on the future of medical science?