Noord-Brabant hospital performs first human 3D-printed hip implant

A 36-year-old man suffering from hip dysplasia received a 3D-printed hip implant at the Anna Hospital in Geldrop, Noord-Brabant, on Friday. “The surgery went according to plan,” a hospital spokesperson reported. While the technology has been used on dogs before, this marks the first time it has been applied to a human patient.

Hip dysplasia occurs when the hip socket is poorly formed, leading to pain, instability, and restricted movement. The condition can also result in the need for a hip replacement at a relatively young age. Surgery to correct it typically involves a lengthy recovery.

The new procedure is expected to reduce recovery time and pain, according to researchers' experience with dogs suffering from the same condition. The patient treated on Friday is the initial participant in a pilot study of five humans. Researchers will evaluate the safety of these first five cases before making the procedure more widely available.

Developed in collaboration with orthopedic specialists and researchers, the technique aims to stabilize the hip joint using a custom 3D-printed implant tailored to the patient’s anatomy. It may help postpone the need for conventional major bone surgeries or early total hip replacements.

This technique was pioneered by Dr. Björn Meij, a professor of clinical sciences at Utrecht University’s Faculty of Veterinary Medicine. He successfully treated hundreds of dogs with similar hip issues before the team at Anna Hospital adapted the technology for human anatomy.

The original procedure came as a result of a unique collaboration between Anna Hospital, the Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e), and Utrecht University.