Feb.4, 2015 | By Simon
While hundreds - if not thousands - of adult individuals around the world have been able to benefit from 3d printed prosthesis, it is really the youngest generation of those in need of prosthesis that are set to see just how life-changing and enabling additive manufacturing really is. While adults who have had deformities have grown up to accept their condition, an increasing amount of younger children are able to have their conditions aided thanks to lower costs, better materials and an increase of resources for customized solutions.
But while we’ve seen a large amount of 3D printed prosthetic arms and hands, 3D printed ears aren’t quite so common.
Born without a complete right ear (including an ear canal) due to a rare condition called Microtia and Atresia, four-year old Tai Medina of Utah, USA has spent his entire life not only not being able to hear out of his right ear, but also had to adjust to his physical differences.
When he was younger, Tai’s parents Tarra and Ismael noticed that Tai was falling behind his peers and although he could hear out of one ear, it wasn’t enough. They began Tai’s journey back to hearing again by having him fitted with a bone-conduction hearing aid. Due to Tai’s unique condition, In-the-Ear hearing aids just simply wouldn’t work. The bone-conduction hearing aid works by relaying vibrations behind the ear so that Tai has a better balance of his surroundings despite not fully-repairing the hearing in his right ear.
Although the bone-conduction hearing aid helped with Tai’s speech, he was still suffering from the emotional effects of his physical deformity - particularly with others staring at his ear. Aiming to avoid having their son being bullied at school with grade school slowly approaching, the Medina’s explored what sort of physical implants could be made to help Tai feel like he fit-in better with his peers.
Previously, the Medinas were told that they would have to remove the existing ear to allow for a prosthetic to be implanted onto Tai, however the surgery came with possible risks that the young family wasn’t willing to take considering that Tai still had his entire life in front of him.
After receiving a flyer in the mail for Paul Tanner, a Salt Lake City, Utah anaplastologist who specialized in treating cancer patients, the Medina’s contacted him to see if he might be able to help.
After meeting with Tanner, it was determined that he would be able to create a prosthetic that could be fastened over Tai’s right ear and artistically painted to match his left ear...much to the relief of the Medinas.
To create the prosthetic ear, Tanner used a CT scan of Tai’s left ear to create a right ear that was flipped and sent to a local 3D printer. Once the ear was printed, it was sent back to Tanner who used it to create a silicone mold of a right ear that was the exact size of Tai’s left ear. Once the ear was fabricated, Tanner painted the ear to match the skin tones of Tai’s left ear so that it would look natural when it was attached.
Thankfully, the ear looks real and the Medinas were able to both recreate Tai’s hearing through the bone-conduction hearing aid while also helping him fit in with his peers with a prosthetic ear without resorting to risky surgical procedures.
Although he will have to get his prosthetic ear replaced every two years to match the growth and changes of his left ear, Tai can now fit in amongst his peers thanks to 3D printing technologies.
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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