3D Printing, passing of a legend, and Kermit the Frog singing “Once in a lifetime”

Last week, I came across an interesting use of 3D printing in complex aortic repair.

This is very different from the technique described by Dr. Starnes and the basis for the company Aortica that he later sold to Terumo for an undisclosed amount.

He further added that the printer his company used was quite expensive, costing $350K showing how far the prices of modern 3D printers have come down in recent years. A great example of technology cost curves bending downwards over time.

I asked the #AortaEd #vascular community their thoughts on using 3D printing in their clinical practices in yet another Twitter Poll.

The results were all over the place with no clear consensus in favor or against the technology.

The physicians that did use 3D printing saw the value in it with Dr. Bechara sharing some examples.

Dr. Beck thinks it might be useful but he also indicated that picking spots for fenestrations and branches were not an issue for him.

Dr. Bowser, who gave me tips when I was picking my first 3D printer had this to say.

And finally, Dr. Tripathi thought there might be a use for them in PMEGS.

One neat thing about these Twitter discussions is that eventually, we all learn about an interesting and related project that just got underway. Dr. Beckerman from Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center shared the good news of a substantial grant from the SVS Foundation to study the use of 3D printing in treating Aortic disease.

I did a little 3D printing of my own using open-source software called 3D Slicer, Cura, and an Ender 3D printer.

Later in the week, I wrote a substack post summarizing my findings on the topic of nonionizing radiation-based imaging technologies and what the future looks like for them.

I also read in New York Times about the passing of Dr. John Bentson, the inventor of Bentson Wire. Did you know that he never patented his guidewire technology?

I finished reading the book “It Doesn’t Have to be Crazy at Work” by Jason Fried

This is a photo of Indianapolis from the 1960s before the inner loop of I65 was built. It is a scan from my personal collection of Kodachromes.

And finally, this classic Talking Heads song “Once in a Lifetime” cover by Kermit bringing it all home.

Have a great week y’all!

Originally published at https://nightcap.substack.com.