Materialise and Siemens Healthineers, a medical technology branch of the German conglomerate Siemens AG, have announced a collaboration to bring 3D printing capabilities to hospitals around the world. Together the partners will provide software necessary to make anatomical models using patient data, and add another dimension to the field of medical imaging.
From the specialists to the patients
Mimics inPrint is a software developed by Materialise that allows radiologists to turn a patient’s body scan data into a digital, 3D printable model. Compatible with standard DICOM medical image storage and transmission, the program can easily be used with all modern medical imaging techniques including CT and MRI.
Through Siemens Healthineers, Mimics inPrint will be available as an app for to company’s syngo.via software platform, that provides physicians with advanced reading data for more challenging conditions including cancer, Parkinson’s Disease, and heart complications.
Valentin Ziebandt, Head of Marketing for the Syngo Business Line at Siemens Healthineers comments, “By incorporating 3D technology into syngo.via, we jointly support the entire workflow from patient diagnosis to therapy planning,”
“This is a cost-effective way to increase the clinical capabilities of syngo.via and an important step towards achieving personalized care and precision medicine.”
The state of 3D med
3D printing in medicine is currently a work-in-progress undergoing gradual acceptance with approval from the FDA and similar bodies around the world. The technology’s potential for surgical planning however is much more admissible. Free from the same stringent regulations as implants for the body, anatomical models have been instrumental to a number of operations by providing physicians with a much clearer view of complex cases.
Similarly, the medical technology branch of Philips has integrated 3D printing into its IntelliSpace Portal software package, and inked partnerships with both Stratasys and 3D Systems to develop this area.
“A better and healthier world”
More nations around the world are also opening dedicated 3D printing centers to aid in advanced treatments and improve patient care. Alongside the collaboration with Siemens, Materialise has also announced a medical 3D Print Lab partnership with formlabs, coupling its Mimics inPrint software with Form 2 3D printers.
Brigitte de Vet, Vice President of Medical at Materialise, comments, “We believe 3D printing is going to revolutionize the medical industry and we are always looking for ways to improve accessibility of our 3D printing software to more patients and hospitals,”
“By partnering with other global healthcare leaders like Siemens Healthineers, we can do just that, and more importantly, we can further contribute to a better and healthier world.”
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Featured image shows a 3D printed anatomical heart model. Photo via Materialise NV
