Surgeon Implants 3D-Printed Sternum

Matthew Reinersman, M.D., performed OU Health’s first reconstructive surgery using 3D-printed components.

Thoracic oncologic surgeon Matthew Reinersman, M.D., performed OU Health’s first reconstructive surgery using components generated by 3D printing technology.

Reinersman’s patient had her sternum removed as part of a lifesaving cancer surgery, but the resulting gap in the bony structure was a source of pain, making breathing and speaking difficult. The patient had undergone two previous reconstructions, but available materials were not rigid enough

to contain bulging lung tissue, which caused considerable discomfort.

Reinersman implanted the titanium segments crafted specifically for this patient. Scans provided accurate images of the defect, and a sterile model was designed to ensure a precision fit before the final prosthetic was printed and placed. Relief was nearly instantaneous. Reinersman worked for months with an Indiana-based lab based to create a titanium sternum bone.

“It’s a pretty ingenious concept. There are plates that go between ribs, screwed into the plate and then into her ribs. Other plates are placed for stability of the whole structure,” Reinersman said. “It was amazing in that it fit exactly — like it was her own natural sternum.”