Laser Rapid Prototyping of Patient-Specific Ossicular Replacement Prostheses

该奖项的研究目标是使用基于激光的快速成型工艺来制造针对患者的中耳植入物。中耳植入物的制造将具有适当的设计特征，包括几何形状和重量，针对特定的患者。此外，无机-有机杂化材料将被准备用于这些植入物中，这些材料表现出与天然骨相似的声音传输、稳定性、声音传输和硬度特性。该方法将涉及使用基于激光的快速成型工艺创建的材料的生物、化学和机械特性；面向工艺的计算几何分析，以制造特定于患者的中耳植入物；以及特定于患者的中耳植入物的功能表征。如果成功，这项研究的好处和更广泛的影响将是为中耳植入物和其他患者特有的医疗设备的快速成型提供新的技术。预计特定于患者的中耳植入物将比传统植入物提供更长时间的声音传输。此外，在拟议的研究计划中开发的模型将有助于检查其他不规则形状物体的力学和几何形状，包括自然组织、地球物理特征和其他不规则表面。从教育角度来看，拟议的项目将与北卡罗来纳大学生物医学工程专业和北卡罗来纳州立大学生物制造专业的培训目标紧密结合。来自代表性不足背景的研究生和本科生都将被招募参加拟议的研究计划，本科生的支持来自目前资助的本科生研究体验计划。

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.