Woman gets first 3D-printed ear made from her own tissue
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Loading... - Darsh Patel
- 07 Jun 2022
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In what could be one of the first successful integration of medical science with technology, a woman diagnosed with a rare deformity has received a new ear implant developed from her own tissues.
Scientists have for the first time developed a 3D printed ear implant using living tissue under the first-in-human Phase 1/2a clinical trials in the United States.
3DBio Therapeutics (3DBio), a clinical-stage regenerative medicine company along with Microtia-Congenital Ear Deformity Institute, announced the successful surgery on a patient with microtia, a rare congenital deformity where one or both outer ears are absent or underdeveloped.
The ear was printed in a shape that matched the woman's left ear and according to its makers, it will continue to regenerate cartilage tissue, making it feel natural. The company further said that the implant, being called AuriNovo, is designed to provide a treatment alternative to rib cartilage grafts and synthetic materials traditionally used to reconstruct the outer ear of microtia patients.
The team relied on 3D scanning of the opposite ear to specifically match the patient’s ear geometry. It incorporated the patient’s own auricular cartilage cells into a 3D-printed, living, full-sized ear construct designed to replace the patient’s microtia-affected ear.
The procedure was led by Dr Arturo Bonilla, a leading pediatric ear reconstructive surgeon specializing in microtia in Texas, who said that he is inspired by what this technology may mean for microtia patients and their families.
"This study will allow us to investigate the safety and aesthetic properties of this new procedure for ear reconstruction using the patient’s own cartilage cells. My hope is that AuriNovo will one day become the standard of care replacing the current surgical methods for ear reconstruction requiring the harvesting of rib cartilage or the use of porous polyethylene (PPE) implants," Dr. Bonilla added.
While the company has not released the technical details of the procedure over proprietary concerns, it stated that it took over seven years to develop the technology.
“We believe that the microtia clinical trial can provide us not only with robust evidence about the value of this innovative product and the positive impact it can have for microtia patients but also demonstrate the potential for the technology to provide living tissue implants in other therapeutic areas in the future.”Daniel Cohen, Ph.D., 3DBio Chief Executive Officer said in a release. Read More...
