A 20-year-old woman from Mexico has had a successful ear transplant in the United States. It wasn’t just an ear. No, it was an ear made with a 3D printer. It is the first time that a person gets a new ear in such a way.
The printer made a new auricle using the woman’s cells. The woman has a condition called mictrotia, which means that her pinna is very small or not even developed.
The American company 3DBio Therapeutics has printed the new auricle of the woman. Cells that make cartilage from her affected ear were used. These were then mixed again with ‘bio-ink’. Following the example of her healthy ear, the new auricle was printed.
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The woman will be monitored for the next five years to see how her new ear is doing. Eleven other people are in line to undergo a similar operation. The company is still awaiting approval from the US drug watchdog FDA.
Against CBS News Arturo Bonilla, the surgeon who performed the procedure, says he’s “waited all his life for this moment.” For the time being, cartilage from the ribs is usually used when making a new ear. The option with the 3D printer would be much less invasive. Incidentally, it is an intervention on the appearance. “It doesn’t change the hearing,” said Bonilla.
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