At this point, if they’re keeping up with 3DPI, there should be no doubt in the medical community as to the value of 3D printed models for preparing for surgeries. The anecdotal evidence of just how useful a 3D printed model created from a patient’s MRI or CT data can be for understanding their anatomy ahead of an operation has become just too much to ignore. And, for this reason, Ultimaker and Philips used these models as a unique selling point for both of their products at the 23rd annual meeting of the International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine this summer.
At the ISMRM meeting in Toronto this June, Philips combined its MRI technology and software with Ultimaker’s desktop 3D printers to demonstrate just how powerful the two can be when brought together. To do so, they MRI scans from specific case studies into 3D models that were 3D printed live on Ultimaker 2 and Ultimaker 2 Extended machines, including: an aneurism, a cross-section of a knee, and a whole a human brain in tandem with a human head. While doctors new to 3D printing were able to see how the technology could be used to create more tangible teaching aids, those already familiar with it were introduced to the idea of using low-cost, desktop printers for such a process, bringing the possibility of 3D printing medical models that much more within reach.
