Additive manufacturing (AM) Renishaw has collaborated with two technology companies to use AM to produce spinal implants.
Manufacturing research organisation Irish Manufacturing Research (IMR) designed a representative titanium spinal implant, aimed at the cervical spine, using manufacturing software company nTopology's generative design software. IMR then manufactured the implants using Renishaw's RenAM 500M metal AM system.
‘AM can be used to manufacture spinal implants with lattice structures, which cannot be achieved with conventional manufacturing techniques,’ said Ed Littlewood, marketing manager of Renishaw's medical and dental products division. ‘An implant with a lattice structure is lightweight, can be optimized to meet the required loading conditions and has a greater surface area, which can aid osseointegration. Therefore, AM implants can be designed to mimic the mechanical properties of bone, resulting in better patient outcomes.’
This story uses material from Renishaw, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
