Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Perspective
  • Published:

Use of 3D printing in andrological surgery: what are the new perspectives

International Journal of Impotence Research volume 32, pages 369–370 (2020)Cite this article

Subjects

Three-dimensional printing is a process of building 3D objects from a digital file. The 3D printing technology has been in use for over 30 years in the automobile and aeronautical industries. In the medical field, the use of this technology was limited only to 3D printing of anatomical models for study purposes. However, recent advances in the development of new biodegradable materials have made 3D printing technology in the medical and pharmaceutical field revolutionary [1]. Currently, additive manufacturing technology has wide applications in the clinical field and is growing rapidly, thanks to the sustainability of costs and the personalization of medicine. It has revolutionized the healthcare system, allowing the construction of biomedical models and customized surgical aids for the patient. There are many biomaterials currently used in medical 3D printing, including metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites [2]. The most widespread clinical applications include the creation of prostheses that can be customized on the patient, regeneration of biosynthetic tissues and organs, the creation of anatomical models that can be used for pre or perioperative simulations [3]. Although 3D printing is now a reality in the urological field [4], especially with regard to renal and prostatic surgery [5].

In fact, as reported by Cacciamani et al. in a systematic review, Globally, 29 papers reported the “surgical planning” as outcome of interest, of which two evaluated adrenal gland diseases, 16 kidney disease conditions, seven prostate cancer, and four pelvicalyceal system [5].

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Liaw C-Y, Guvendiren M. Current and emerging applications of 3D printing in medicine. Biofabrication. 2017;9:024102.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Schubert C, van Langeveld MC, Donoso LA. Innovations in 3D printing: a 3D overview from optics to organs. Br J Ophthalmol. 2014;98:159–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Ventola CL. Medical Applications for 3D Printing: Current and Projected Uses. P T. 2014;39:704–11.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Checcucci E, Amparore D, Fiori C, Manfredi M, Ivano M, Di Dio M. et al. 3D imaging applications for robotic urologic surgery: an ESUT YAUWP review. World J Urol. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00345-019-02922-4.

  5. Cacciamani GE, Okhunov Z, Meneses AD, Rodriguez-Socarras ME, Rivas JG, Porpiglia F, et al. Impact of Three-dimensional Printing in Urology: state of the art and future perspectives. A systematic review by ESUT-YAUWP Group. Eur Urol. 2019;76:209–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. van Renterghem K, Ghazi A .3D pelvic cadaver model: a novel approach to surgical training for penile implant surgery. Int J Impot Res. 2019. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-019-0211-2.

  7. Souzaki R, Kinoshita Y, Ieiri S, Kawakubo N, Obata S, Jimbo T, et al. Preoperative surgical simulation of laparoscopic adrenalectomy for neuroblastoma using a three-dimensional printed model based on preoperative CT images. J Pediatr Surg. 2015;50:2112–5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Urology Section, Department of Surgery, University of Catania, Catania, Italy

    Giorgio Ivan Russo, Marina Di Mauro & Sebastiano Cimino

Authors
  1. Giorgio Ivan Russo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Marina Di Mauro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Sebastiano Cimino
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Giorgio Ivan Russo.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Russo, G.I., Di Mauro, M. & Cimino, S. Use of 3D printing in andrological surgery: what are the new perspectives. Int J Impot Res 32, 369–370 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-019-0221-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41443-019-0221-0

Search

Advanced search

Quick links