By Alec
Over the past few years the number of 3D printers used by medical professionals has been skyrocketing, but in the majority of cases they seem to be used for little more than excellent surgical models for prepping operations. However, a case from Virginia serves as a reminder that the technology can already make significant impact as an implant manufacturing tool. Ruth Smith-Leigh definitely agrees, as her leg was saved thanks to the help of a 3D printed implant. After suffering a terrible injury in a car crash, she was told her leg needed to be amputated. Fortunately, a 3D printed alternative instead enables her to continue to walk.
It’s the kind of story you dread whenever a loved one steps into a car. Ruth Smith-Leigh, from Halifax, Virginia, was driving home after a birthday party one night – with her two young boys strapped in in the back – when her car was hit head-on. Fortunately, her boys were unscathed, but Smith-Leigh herself was partially crushed, leaving her with a severely injured left leg. “Something was wrong with my leg, but I just thought it was a simple break,” Smith-Leigh said of the incident. Taken to Duke University Hospital in Durham, she was told she needed emergency surgery. “The doctor actually told me that I had to have it amputated,” Smith-Leigh said, adding that her bones were left so damaged that they could not be reset.
