3-D Printed Casts Offer Patients Customized Solutions for Bone Breaks

The casts, created by Spanish startup Xkelet, are waterproof, itch-proof, easily removed, and can be reused, eliminating the time and cost of recasting with traditional materials.

Anyone who has ever had to wear a cast can attest to the inconveniences they experience, such as difficulty in showering because the casts are not waterproof, not being able to swim, the heaviness of the cast, and not being able to scratch the inevitable itches. But now, with a new Red Dot Award-winning technology that uses 3-D printing, plaster casts may become a thing of the past, at least when it comes to treating sprains or light fractures.

Xkelet casts are 3-D printed using a SLS 3-D printer with the waterproof and hypoallergenic PA2200 plastic material, which is compatible with ISO 10993-1. The casts are lightweight, weighing less than 100 grams.

“[The material] is biodegradable, and we can put it in many different colors,” said Tim Dobrinich, COO and co-founder of TriMed, in an interview with MD+DI. TriMed is a major distributor of the casts from Exiom, which owns the exclusive U.S. rights to the products. TriMed also installs and trains medical practitioners who want to provide this service......to read more please visit source (https://www.mddionline.com/3-d-printed-casts-offer-patients-customized-solutions-bone-breaks)

By Susan Shepard is a freelance contributor to MD + DI. from original article, published 5 year ago

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