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Zeynep Kalaycıoğlu | Aug 15, 2024
Dr. Lecturer Yetkin Öztürk at the Faculty of Science and Literature, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, developed in his study on bone plates, a new fixation enhancing implant that can be applied to overweight patients and increases the plate strength. This implant is produced patient-specific with a 3D printer. It can be applied to the broken bone together with the bone plate. The work was registered by the Turkish Patent Office.
Fractures of long bones can be successfully treated with plates, external fixators or a combination of these. In some cases, complications may occur. One of these is the plate breaking or losing its fixation power. As a result, the patient has to undergo surgery again. The study was carried out due to the problem that the plates used in long bone fractures may break or the screw loosening from the bone, because of the patient's heavy weight and movement before union. A replica of the bone is produced from the patient's computer tomography image, and a plate is applied on it, as in surgery. The implant was produced on the plated bone replica and printed from biocompatible material using a 3D printer. It has been proven by force tests that the strength of the plate with our implant is increased compared to only the plate applied bone replica. The implant can be designed according to the surgeon’s choice with his hands. The invention has been registered by the Turkish Patent Office and the evaluation of the PCT (European) application continues.
