Treatment for the condition involves the creation of an ocular prosthesis, or a “glass eye,” though the prostheses are no longer made from glass but medical-grade acrylic. These prostheses can be spherical like a natural eyeball, or cup-shaped to fit over an underdeveloped eye. They’re not easy to create, though, especially for babies. An ocularist typically has to visually gauge the size of the eye socket, create a prosthesis based on guesswork, and then alter it until it fits perfectly.
The process takes time, and a growing baby doesn’t have much of that. Without an eye to support the frame of the eye socket, that part of the skull can actually cave inward, so something needs to be placed there very quickly…something like a 3D printed conformer.
Kuitjen and her research team recently conducted a study in which five infants were fitted with 3D printed eye conformers, which help the eye sockets grow and form as they would naturally. The children were being treated at the office of Dr. Dyonne Hartong, an oculoplastic surgeon at the VU University Medical Center, who is currently treating about 50 patients with microphthalmia or anophthalmia. Using MRI scan data, the researchers assessed the extent of the eye malformation and the size of the eye sockets, and even created molds by injecting a soft gel into the sockets.
Using this data along with data on natural eye development, Kuitjen created an eye growth chart for the next 10 years of the children’s lives. The team then 3D printed several eye conformers, customized to each child based on their scans and in different sizes that matched the predictions of their eye growth. While the conformers don’t look like eyes – they’re just opaque plastic – they’re noninvasive, not painful, and easy enough for parents to insert once they’ve been properly trained. A more cosmetic prosthetic can be designed later in life if desired, but the conformers allow the face to develop with a natural shape.
After about a year of treatment with the conformers, the study has shown that the socket volumes of the children’s eyes have doubled on average. The study is still ongoing.
“This is certainly a novel approach with several advantages,” said Dr. Irene Gottlob, a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Leicester Ulverscroft Eye Unit at the Leicester Royal Infirmary who was not involved in the study. “This is a good example of individualized treatment, or ‘precision medicine.’ It is also a good example of how 3D printing can be used in medicine. However, so far, only five patients have been treated, and we need to see the results of a larger group.”
The researchers plan to improve the mathematical models used to predict the children’s eye growth; Dr. Gottlob said that improvement of ultrasound methods could also help younger infants to receive the treatment. Currently, infants cannot undergo MRI scans before the age of three months because anesthesia is required for them to be still enough for the scans. Because anesthesia is considered too dangerous for infants under three months, ultrasounds are taken instead.
Regardless, Dr. Gottlob calls the method “promising.” While 3D printing can’t restore sight for children born with underdeveloped or missing eyes – yet – it can allow them relief from further suffering caused by their conditions. Discuss in the 3D Printed Eye Confomers forum at 3DPB.com.
[Source: Live Science]
Subscribe to Our Email Newsletter
Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and receive information and offers from third party vendors.
You May Also Like
US Army Corps of Engineers Taps Lincoln Electric & Eaton for Largest 3D Printed US Civil Works Part
The Soo Locks sit on the US-Canadian border, enabling maritime travel between Lake Superior and Lake Huron, from which ships can reach the rest of the Great Lakes. Crafts carrying...
Construction 3D Printing CEO Reflects on Being Female in Construction
Natalie Wadley, CEO of ChangeMaker3D, could hear the words of her daughter sitting next to her resounding in her head. “Mum, MUM, you’ve won!” Wadley had just won the prestigious...
Blue Laser-powered M600 3D Printer Launched by Meltio
Founded in 2019 as a joint venture between Additec and Sicnova, metal 3D printer OEM Meltio develops and manufactures high-performance and easy-to-use metal 3D printing solutions that use its patented wire-laser metal...
3D Printed Storage Tanks Cut Material Costs by 25%
In a previous article, “Concrete Dreams: Let’s Print Money, Not Houses,” we discussed how the spotlight on 3D printing homes might be misplaced. Bollards, pedestrian bridges, and concrete tanks could...