Scientists are developing flexible materials to 3D print blood vessels for treating vascular defects in children. The team has been awarded a grant totaling $211,000 from the NIH for their cause.
3D Printed medical magic:
Since the introduction of 3D printing technology, the world is taken by storm. From fashion industry to traditional home construction, 3D printing is fabricating a path for itself into modern society with Medical community being the latest to warm up with the technology.
the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a $211,000 Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant to an engineer at the University of Texas at Arlington to develop 3D-printable materials for developing new blood vessels for children.
Engineer Yi Hong, in partnership with Guohao Dai of Northeastern University, is setting his sights on fighting vascular defects in children. Children are difficult to treat than adults because they easily outgrow any grafts, leading to multiple invasive surgeries for constant graft replacement.
Considering this problem, the bioengineering duo is attempting to create a range of 3D-printed materials that can be transformed into flexible, patient-specific blood vessels. These materials can then be mixed with human cells to create a fixture among biological blood vessels. Their elasticity could significantly improve the lives of children with vascular defects who currently need multiple invasive surgeries per graft. The printed blood vessels might also reduce the risk of thrombosis compared to that posed by traditional grafts.
Potential Impact
There are many types of vascular abnormalities that affect children. Some examples include aneurysms, which are sacs that can form on arteries in the brain; arteriovenous malformations, which are tangles of thin, easily ruptured vessels in the brain or spinal cord; and moyamoya disease, which blocks blood flow to the brain due to constricted arteries. These conditions can cause symptoms such as headaches, seizures, and even coma. With today’s therapies, children with vascular defects have it extremely rough — but if Hong’s project can accomplish its goals, things could get better.
Hong is confident in his project, and his history in raising $850,000 in funds from grants for his past projects further supports that claim. Hong’s method is ambitious, but his potential success will further solidify 3D printing’s role in medicine, encouraging other medical scientists to think outside the box while helping improve the quality of people’s lives.