Additively Manufactured Implant Applications in Orthopedic Surgery

Additive Manufacturing (AM) has revolutionized surgery with its ability to enhance precision and customize treatment of patients. By utilizing this technology, surgeons can create optimized implants and easily predefine surgical interventions to highly enhance the surgical outcomes and minimize risks. With the material variation enriching the applications of AM, ongoing clinical trials largely aim to validate advancements involving custom-designed implants to pave the way for their widespread adoption in medical practice. In this mini-review, orthopedic surgical implant studies with AM methodology conducted between 2020 and 2024 were examined. The importance of AM technology in the rapidly growing orthopedic surgical treatments was emphasized. The role of materials and the associated challenges along with the trending remedies were explained. Concept of patient-specific design method and finite element analysis approach that enables the virtual analysis and prediction of implant properties were also presented. Finally, clinical studies were examined to reveal the reactions of implant designs under real-time conditions.