{"id":21644,"date":"2019-02-07T18:48:19","date_gmt":"2019-02-07T18:48:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/uncategorized\/2019\/02\/07\/how-3d-printers-are-cutting-down-surgery-times-and-helping-vets-get-their-mobility-back-at-va-hospitals\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T05:58:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T05:58:16","slug":"how-3d-printers-are-cutting-down-surgery-times-and-helping-vets-get-their-mobility-back-at-va-hospitals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/navytimes\/veterans\/2019\/02\/07\/how-3d-printers-are-cutting-down-surgery-times-and-helping-vets-get-their-mobility-back-at-va-hospitals\/","title":{"rendered":"How 3D printers are cutting down surgery times and helping vets get mobility back at VA hospitals"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some doctors use printers to produce patient records or referrals. Others use them to replicate human organs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s what Dr. Beth Ripley is doing at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Granted, replicas are more plastic than tissue and don\u2019t function like the real thing \u2014 at least not yet. But in a growing number of VA hospitals<\/a> using 3D printing technology, life-size replicas of human anatomy are helping surgeons cut down on operating times by as much as two hours, lowering costs and potentially helping patients heal faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOne of the magical things about 3D printing \u2026 is that you can create these really complex structures that you could never make using traditional manufacturing,\u201d said Ripley, who chairs the VA\u2019s Veterans Health Administration 3D Printing Advisory Committee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radiologists like her can take a CT scan of a veteran\u2019s heart, for example, then print a nearly exact copy of its faulty valve in anywhere from 30 minutes to 30 hours for the surgeons to study. The same goes for tumorous kidneys or pelvises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c[Surgeons] can look at it and figure out exactly what their plan is before they ever go into the surgery,\u201d said Ripley.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Dr. Beth Ripley, a VA Puget Sound Health Care System radiologist, and Brian Strzelecki, a research health sciences specialist at the VA Center for Limb Loss and Mobility perform a quality check on a model of a kidney with a cancerous tumor to ensure the 3D printed model accurately represents the patient\u2019s anatomy. Ripley said having 3D models for presurgical planning has cut down on surgery times by as much as two hours. (Chris Pacheco)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

3D printing capability started in three of the VA\u2019s 172 hospitals in 2017 and has since grown to 20, with 10 more health care facilities working on implementation, according to the VA.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In some hospitals, 3D printers are also being used to make special surgical tools and orthotic devices that enhance mobility for veterans with physical limitations and disabilities. These \u201cMacGyvers of medicine,\u201d as Ripley calls them, allow patients to return to everyday hobbies, such as ice skating or playing pool, she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, the VA announced<\/a> researchers are also collaborating on a three-year project to create a bioprinting program using 3D printers to make replacement tissues customized to individual patients. This would reduce the need for grafting surgeries, among other things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prosthetic limbs are also in the research-and-development stage, as are artificial lungs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of lung injury that happens in combat situations,\u201d said Joseph Potkay, a biomedical engineer at the VA hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan, who\u2019s working toward creating 3D-printed lungs that he hopes will one day replicate the functions of the real thing. \u201cExposure to smoke or even blast injury results in lung injury. Chemical exposure, other irritants can cause lung damage either short term or long term. That\u2019s why this is of interest to veterans hospitals and the [Veterans Health Administration] system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ripley said combat injuries are driving a lot of the innovation at the VA, as doctors and researchers \u201cthink of ways to get people back doing the things they love.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Joseph Potkay, a biomedical engineer with the VA Ann Arbor Health Care System, displays a 2D prototype of an artificial lung. A 3D version is in production. (Brian Hayes\/Department of Veterans Affairs)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The devices cost anywhere from $1,500 to $400,000, she said. But their impact is difficult to put a price tag on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shorter surgery times cut down on operating room costs and also time spent under anesthesia, which can help patients recover faster, she said. And in hospitals where 3D printers are being used to make orthotics, such as braces, veterans just have to go to the hospital once for a fitting. If a replacement is needed, the hospital hits print and drops it in the mail, saving the veteran another trip to the doctor\u2019s office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt can be very low cost and allows you to customize the design, which are huge advantages,\u201d Potkay said of the technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about the future of 3D printing in VA hospitals, Ripley said, \u201cThe goal is that 3D printing services will benefit all 9 million patients as part of the VA system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She also praised her employer for being a leader in this space and recognizing the \u201cpower of 3D printing\u201d early on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI believe that the future is VA will be leading \u2026 what 3D printing looks like and defining what 3D printing looks like for the country. Because we\u2019re so large and because we\u2019re integrated, we\u2019re able to test and deploy on a faster scale,\u201d she said. \u201cI hope you see lots of 3D printing innovations and rapid deployment to veterans as well.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some doctors are using the printers to replicate human organs and develop 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