Louis stokes cleveland va medical center models better health care with 3d printing | va northeast ohio health care | veterans affairs

Tucked away in a corner at the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center is a team of engineers and technologists surrounded by rows of buzzing and whirring machines. The department, part

on-demand manufacturing source and part pre-surgical anatomical modeling shop, has been operating for more than five years. Equipped with a bevy of fourth generation multi-material 3D

printers ranging from countertop microwave to chest-freezer size, the Cleveland VA five-member team is constantly busy solving needs that improve the health of Veterans in northeast Ohio and

across the nation.  Since 2019, the 3D printing capabilities at the Cleveland VA, and across the VA nationally, have expanded both in volume and in the kind of products and healthcare

solutions created. There are generally four categories of output from the 3D Medical Model and Visualizations Lab: * Patient-specific anatomical models (e.g., pre-surgical models and patient

informed consent models) * Assistive technologies and patient specific tools (e.g., ‘ear-saver’ silicone bands for oxygen tubes) * Emerging digital dentistry (e.g., surgical implant guides)

* Design and development for clinical and facility services (e.g., custom environmental control unit handles for spinal cord injury rooms) Perhaps the most significant early output of the

3D printing technology was requested by Dr. Jessie M. Jean-Claude, chief vascular surgeon.  Jean-Claude was facing an unusually challenging procedure—a Veteran with an aneurysm only visible

via a CT scan. As she debated the two procedural options, she reached out to innovation manager Bill Corcuera about printing a 3D visual aid. The model, based on a CT scan of a patient

aorta, was created by Corcuera. “If I’d had this earlier, we could have completed the patient’s surgery 5 weeks ago and saved the VA [about] $20,000,” said Jean-Claude upon delivery of the

model.  Word spread of the usefulness of the new technology and demand has grown steadily.  Corcuera now manages the 3D Medical Model and Visualizations Lab and has a team of an additional

four staff with experience ranging from biomedical, mechanical and electrical engineering and design as well as an experienced diagnostic radiologic technologist.   “As an OT, it is my job

to help individuals overcome physical and social challenges,” said Lauryn Wasil, an occupational therapist in spinal cord injury service. “The 3D print lab has been a great resource to

collaborate with to develop one-of-a-kind items.”   Wasil had a short consultation with biomedical engineers Dylan Beckler and Zach Thumser in the 3D printing lab. “They really understood

what was needed, and they helped create a wheelchair button cover and extended knob devices to maximize Veterans independence and safety at home and out in the community,” she said. As one

of the products in constant demand from the lab is now eyeglasses, Corcuera brought in Sean Wrubel, optician/blind rehabilitation specialist to start up this new service a few years ago.

Wrubel is producing a steady stream of glasses—about 80 pair per week—on a dedicated next generation lens edger. Cost analysis found that manufacturing of eyeglasses locally saves both time

and money compared to ordering from an external vendor.  In March, the team saw their first peer-reviewed article published in “3D Printing in Medicine”. The Cleveland team worked with a

regional academic institution to validate a standardized quality assurance protocol developed at the Cleveland VA utilizing very specific dimensions with quantified tolerances. It’s a step

toward standardizing protocols allowing identical models to be created at multiple locations, and to ensuring models are validated as dimensionally accurate. “3D printing and emerging

technological innovations are transforming VA healthcare here in Cleveland,” Corcuera said. “But as the VA presses forward, healthcare for all patients across the country will benefit.”  An

introductory video on VANEOHS 3D printing is available for viewing.