At the Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital in New York a Baby’s life was probably saved thanks to a 3D printed model of its heart.
When the two-week-old Baby was diagnosed with a congenital heart defect, doctors used 3D printing technology to help planning the surgery. Based on a MRI Scan data a 3D model of the heart was created which was later 3D printed.
“The baby’s heart had holes, which are not uncommon with CHD, but the heart chambers were also in an unusual formation, rather like a maze,” said Dr. Emile Bacha, head of cardiac surgery at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, who performed the surgery at Morgan Stanley Hospital. “In the past we had to stop the heart and look inside to decide what to do,” Bacha said. “With this technique, it was like we had a road map to guide us. We were able to repair the baby’s heart with one operation.”
The MRI Scan as well as the 3D printing of the deformed heart model was funded by Matthew’s Heart of Hope Foundation.
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