Author Topic: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life  (Read 1877 times)

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Offline dpareja

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3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« on: May 23, 2013, 11:00:35 pm »
http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2013/05/23/airway-splint-baby-grow.html

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In a medical first, doctors used plastic particles and a 3-D laser printer to create an airway splint to save the life of a baby boy who used to stop breathing nearly every day.

...

In a single day, they "printed out" 100 tiny tubes, using computer-guided lasers to stack and fuse thin layers of plastic instead of paper and ink to form various shapes and sizes. The next day, with special permission from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, they implanted one of these tubes in Kaiba, the first time this has been done.

Suddenly, a baby that doctors had said would probably not leave the hospital alive could breathe normally for the first time. He was 3 months old when the operation was done last year and is nearly 19 months old now. He is about to have his tracheotomy tube removed; it was placed when he was a couple months old and needed a breathing machine. And he has not had a single breathing crisis since coming home a year ago.

This is why 3-D printing is awesome.
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Offline Stormwarden

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2013, 01:21:13 am »
I agree with this. Things like this are where 3D printers can, and should, come into their own. I hope to heat more stories like this real soon.


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Offline Tolpuddle Martyr

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #2 on: May 30, 2013, 06:18:23 pm »
I do hope they don't crack down on this potentially life saving tech because of a few knuckleheads that want to make zip guns.

Offline anti-nonsense

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2013, 06:19:42 am »
that is fucking awesome. Go science!
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Offline Askold

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #4 on: June 08, 2013, 08:38:39 am »
This is particularly good use of a 3-D printer because they can make unique items with it without a need for molds or stuff like which are costly to make.
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Offline Dynamic Dragon

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #5 on: June 08, 2013, 03:05:25 pm »
3D Printers are incredible!  In the future, they'll probably be ubiquitous.
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Offline Southern Comforter

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #6 on: June 08, 2013, 10:16:30 pm »
The same machine that prints out guns prints out life saving airway tubes, much like the way water gives life to man yet has the capacity to take it a way. The duality of nature sure is a funny thing.

Offline The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist

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Re: 3-D printed airway tube saves boy's life
« Reply #7 on: June 09, 2013, 01:49:37 am »
Thinking of all the potential medical applications of this technology has my head spinning. This is seriously awesome.
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