Gallup Nicole, Bow Jennifer K, Pearce Joshua M
Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA.
Department of Materials Science & Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, USA.
Geriatrics (Basel). 2018 Dec 6;3(4):89. doi: 10.3390/geriatrics3040089.
By 2040, more than a quarter of the U.S. population will have diagnosed arthritic conditions. Adults with arthritis and other rheumatic conditions earn less than average yet have medical care expenditures that are over 12% of average household income. Adaptive aids can help arthritis patients continue to maintain independence and quality of life; however, their high costs limit accessibility for older people and the poor. One method used for consumer price reduction is distributed manufacturing with 3-D printers. In order to assess if such a method would be financially beneficial, this study evaluates the techno-economic viability of distributed manufacturing of adaptive aids for arthritis patients. Twenty freely accessible designs for 3-D printable adaptive aids were successfully fabricated on low-cost desktop 3-D printers and performed their functions adequately. The financial savings averaged >94% compared to commercially-available products. Overall, twenty adaptive aids were printed for US$20 of plastic; while on average, each adaptive aid would save over US$20. As printing a tiny subset of the adaptive aids needed by a single patient would recover the full capital and operational costs of a low-cost 3-D printer, it can be concluded that there is considerable potential for distributed manufacturing to assist arthritis patients.
到2040年，超过四分之一的美国人口将被诊断患有关节炎。患有关节炎和其他风湿性疾病的成年人收入低于平均水平，但医疗保健支出却超过家庭平均收入的12%。适应性辅助器具可以帮助关节炎患者继续保持独立和生活质量；然而，其高昂的成本限制了老年人和贫困人口的可及性。一种降低消费者价格的方法是使用3D打印机进行分布式制造。为了评估这种方法在经济上是否有益，本研究评估了为关节炎患者分布式制造适应性辅助器具的技术经济可行性。20种可免费获取的3D打印适应性辅助器具设计在低成本桌面3D打印机上成功制造出来，并充分发挥了其功能。与市售产品相比，节省的费用平均超过94%。总体而言，用20美元的塑料打印了20种适应性辅助器具；而平均每种适应性辅助器具可节省超过20美元。由于为一名患者打印一小部分所需的适应性辅助器具就能收回低成本3D打印机的全部资本和运营成本，因此可以得出结论，分布式制造在帮助关节炎患者方面有很大潜力。
