3D printing tantalum metal technology shows off again, Harbin Fifth Hospital helps 18-year-old boy regain freedom of movement

Heilongjiang News, January 3rd (Gao Junzhen, Zhou Zhihan) Recently, the hand surgery team of Harbin Fifth Hospital successfully repaired a 7-centimeter long tibial bone defect in an 18-year-old boy using 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis implantation surgery, allowing him to move freely. The successful application of this technology marks a new breakthrough in the application of 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis replacement surgery in Heilongjiang Province.
A few months ago, 18-year-old Xiao Liu was involved in a car accident, resulting in severe damage to his right lower limb. Although he was able to save his limb through surgery at a nearby hospital, he still faced the problem of bone defects and had limited mobility. He relied on bone cement to temporarily support the defect site. After undergoing four surgeries for five months, he still struggles with recovery difficulties and restricted mobility. Xiaoliu went to Harbin Fifth Hospital to seek a more effective treatment plan.
Nie Guangchen from the Hand Surgery Branch of Harbin Fifth Hospital stated that traditional methods for treating bone defects, such as bone transfer, free bone flap transplantation, and induction membrane technology, generally have disadvantages such as high surgical difficulty, high risk, significant damage to patients, and long healing time. Compared to this, 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis replacement surgery demonstrates significant advantages. This technology, advocated and promoted by Professor Zhao Dewei, is a perfect combination of medicine and advanced technology. Preoperative high-precision 3D CT scanning and 3D reconstruction are used to accurately restore the patient's bone morphology, simulate the effect of prosthesis implantation, and then customize exclusive porous tantalum implants based on the patient's individual defect condition using 3D printing technology. This technology not only has the characteristics of personalization, precision, and minimally invasive, but also enables "one-to-one" customization, ensuring that the implant is highly matched with the patient's bone, reducing the risk of surgical errors and the incidence of complications. In addition, tantalum metal materials have excellent biocompatibility, and their surface pores help with bone regeneration and tight bonding, effectively improving postoperative joint flexibility.
The team has accumulated rich experience since collaborating with Dalian University Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital in August 2024 to carry out the first 3D printed tantalum metal acetabular prosthesis replacement surgery in Heilongjiang Province. In the face of Xiao Liu's condition, the team invited Professor Zhao Dewei, Vice President of the International Society for Research on Bone Circulation (ARCO), President of the Microsurgery Branch of the Chinese Medical Association, and former Dean of Zhongshan Hospital affiliated with Dalian University, for consultation. After careful discussion, the surgical plan was finally determined, including right tibial open reduction, 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis implantation for internal fixation, pedicle bone flap transplantation, and iliac bone graft surgery for the patient.
In the preoperative preparation stage, the team used 3D printing technology to tailor a special tantalum metal implant for the patient based on their imaging data, and created a 1:1 scale right tibia model for simulated fitting, carefully planning the surgical details. During the surgery, under the guidance of Professor Zhao Dewei, the team of doctors Jiang Long, Xu Qiang, and Lu Yicun cooperated closely and operated steadily, successfully completing the surgery in 2 hours. During the surgery, doctors first remove bone cement and necrotic bone, carefully design a transplanted bone flap to provide lateral support for the tibia, accurately cut a retrograde bone strip with a tibial artery perforating branch from the distal end of the tibial defect, and implant a 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis and an internal fixation steel plate in one piece. After careful adjustment and fitting, the bone strip is returned to its original position and fixed with screws; Finally, a suitable sized iliac bone block is implanted into the proximal tibial defect wound to supplement the bone defect. After intraoperative imaging confirmation, the implant position was ideal and firmly fixed, and then suturing and bandaging were completed. At present, Xiaoliu is recovering well and has gradually resumed normal operations.
Since 2024, the Nie Guangchen team from the Hand Surgery Branch of Harbin Fifth Hospital has completed the first 3D printed tantalum metal prosthesis replacement surgery in the province. The success of this case marks another expansion of the application field of this technology.