ChoiceSpine, a provider of specialized spine surgery systems, has announced an expansion of its TigerShark Lateral Interbody System. Developed in collaboration with Stuart D. Kinsella, MD, MSTR of The Steadman Clinic, the updated implant line introduces new sizes designed to better match a variety of patient anatomies.
“This line extension reflects a meaningful step forward in tailoring spine surgery to each individual patient,” said Stuart D. Kinsella, MD, MSTR. “We now have more personalized tools to achieve our surgical goals that can match the patient’s unique spinal profile.”
Enhanced Design and Surgical Flexibility
The TigerShark Lateral System features ChoiceSpine’s proprietary BioBond porous trabecular structure, created using additive manufacturing. This architecture combines submicron, micro, and macro interconnected features to enhance surface contact, distribute load efficiently, and promote osseointegration.
“By working closely with our surgeon partners, we continue to design solutions that address the real-world variability in patient anatomy,” added Stephen Ainsworth, Ph.D., ChoiceSpine’s Co-President. “This collaboration ensures that our technology evolves in step with the clinical challenges and opportunities faced in modern spine surgery.”
The TigerShark Lateral Interbody System offers three lordotic options for each interbody footprint—0°, 6°, and 12°—and includes large central openings with deep perimeter cuts to maximize bone graft placement. Its design also ensures visibility under fluoroscopy, supporting accurate placement and improved surgical outcomes.
AM in Spinal Repair
Beyond ChoiceSpine’s advancements, researchers are pushing the boundaries of spinal 3D printing. Researchers at the University of Minnesota (UMN) designed a new approach to repairing damaged spinal cords. Published in Advanced Healthcare Materials, the researchers combined 3D printed scaffolds with spinal neural progenitor cells (sNPCs) that assembled into organoid-like structures and were able to improve partial movement in rats with complete spinal cord injuries. Although still in early stages, the findings offer a glimpse of how engineered tissue structures might eventually help patients who currently have no way to regain lost nerve function.
Elsewhere, researchers at Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) University of Medicine and Health Sciences and Trinity College Dublin created a 3D printed spinal implant that blends a soft, tissue-like matrix with conductive fibers designed to deliver electrical stimulation across damaged nerves.
Produced through melt electrowriting, the implant uses polycaprolactone fibers coated with MXene nanosheets, arranged in low-, medium-, and high-density networks to fine-tune conductivity. In lab tests, neurons grew more robustly on MXene-coated fibers, while astrocytes were less reactive and microglia showed no inflammation. Medium-density scaffolds offered the best balance, supporting longer axon growth and more mature neurons under electrical stimulation, pointing to a promising avenue for spinal repair.
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Featured image shows TigerShark Lateral Interbody System. Image via ChoiceSpine.
