3-D Printed Micro Hearing Device

Ossicular Conductive Hearing Loss Prostheses On Coin
Ossicular conductive hearing loss comes from damage to the three bones in the inner ear known as ossicles. Surgeons can make steel and ceramic replacement parts, but they have a high failure rate; so researchers at the University of Maryland took the “anvil,” “hammer,” and “stirrup” ossicles from human cadavers and, with CT imaging and 3-D printing, made resin reproductions. “When four surgeons were subsequently asked to match each prosthesis to the specific ossicular chain from which it came, they were all able to do so correctly. None of the surgeons had prior knowledge of which prosthesis belonged to which cadaver.” This suggests it will be possible, while a patient in on the operating table, for surgeons to 3-D print accurate, functional ossicles that restore hearing. MORE
Image Credit: University of Maryland