Oct 14, 2015 | By Benedict
4WEB Medical has announced today that they will launch their Posterior Spine Truss System in the U.S. market. The announcement was made at the North American Spine Society annual meeting in Chicago. 4WEB Medical was the first company to receive FDA clearance for an additively manufactured spine implant, and is the market leader in 3D printed implant technology. Since 2013, around 6000 of the company’s 3D printed truss implants having been used in surgery worldwide. Their newly developed Posterior Spine Truss System is a comprehensive line of interbody fusion devices which can be used in a variety of posterior spine approaches including PLIF, TLIF, and Oblique procedures.
"The Posterior Spine Truss System represents a significant advancement in treatment options for my lumbar spine patients", explained S. Babak Kalantar, M.D., Chief of Orthopedic Spine Surgery at Georgetown University Hospital. "The expansion of 4WEB's novel truss implant technology into posterior spine procedures will allow me to utilise an implant with proven clinical benefits across the majority of spine surgeries that I perform.”
The Posterior Spine Truss System is comprised of 150 3D printed implants, which gives surgeons a wide range of options to ensure a perfect match for each patient. This has made life a great deal easier for surgeons such as Joseph O'Brien, M.D., Medical Director of Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery at The George Washington University Hospital. "While many orthopaedic companies are beginning to utilise 3D printing as a manufacturing process, they continue to produce antiquated annular designs that have been on the market for years,” he explained.
“4WEB is unique in that they are the only company in the spine implant market to maximise the opportunity that 3D printing affords by producing truss designs with distinct structural mechanics that have considerable potential to accelerate healing for my patients. These patented structures were not even possible to manufacture at this scale until only a few years ago.”
4WEB’s unique spinal implants provide innovative functionality, which helps to ensure a more durable and ultimately life-enhancing product. This quality is largely down to the geometrical design of the implants. The biconvex web structure of the implants helps to distribute weight over a larger surface area where the implant meets the spine, greatly reducing the possibility of any sinking or caving in.
4WEB Medical was founded in 2008 by Jessee Hunt in Frisco, Texas. The name of the company refers to the aforementioned “web” structure of its spinal implants. After thirty years of research in topological dimension theory, researchers found that the 4WEB geometrical shape could be effectively used to create strong yet lightweight web structures. This innovative design was taken to the 3D printer, and the company began producing their spinal implants. The company provides implant solutions for Neuro and Orthopedic surgeons.
The 4WEB platform includes the Cervical Spine Truss System, the ALIF Spine Truss System, the Posterior Spine Truss System and the Osteotomy Truss System. The company is currently undertaking research beyond spine implants, and is in the process of developing truss implant designs for knee, hip, trauma and patient specific procedures.
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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