Laser Rapid Prototyping of Patient-Specific Ossicular Replacement Prostheses

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The research objective of this award is to use a laser-based rapid prototyping process in order to fabricate patient-specific middle ear implants. Middle ear implants will be fabricated with appropriate design features, including geometry and weight, for a given patient. In addition, inorganic-organic hybrid materials that demonstrate acoustic transmission, stability, sound transmission, and stiffness properties similar to those of natural bone will be prepared for use in these implants. The approach will involve biological, chemical, and mechanical characterization of materials created using the laser-based rapid prototyping process; process-oriented computational geometric analysis for fabrication of patient-specific middle ear implants; and functional characterization of patient-specific middle ear implants. If successful, the benefits and broader impacts of this research will be to provide new techniques for rapid prototyping of middle ear implants and other patient-specific medical devices. It is anticipated that patient-specific middle ear implants will provide improved sound transmission for longer periods of time than conventional implants. In addition, the models developed in the proposed research program will be useful for examining the mechanics and geometry of other irregularly shaped objects, including natural tissues, geophysical features, and other irregular surfaces. From an educational perspective, the proposed project will be tightly integrated with the training objectives of both the biomedical engineering program at the University of North Carolina and the bio-manufacturing program at North Carolina State University. Both graduate students and undergraduate students from underrepresented backgrounds will be recruited to participate in the proposed research program, with undergraduate student support coming from a currently-funded Research Experiences for Undergraduates program.