Vasiliadis Angelo V, Koukoulias Nikolaos, Katakalos Konstantinos
2nd Orthopedic Department, General Hospital of Thessaloniki "Papageorgiou", 56403 Thessaloniki, Greece.
School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece.
J Funct Biomater. 2022 Jul 21;13(3):101. doi: 10.3390/jfb13030101.
Over the past three decades, additive manufacturing has changed from an innovative technology to an increasingly accessible tool in all aspects of different medical practices, including orthopedics. Although 3D-printing technology offers a relatively inexpensive, rapid and less risky route of manufacturing, it is still quite limited for the fabrication of more complex objects. Over the last few years, stable 3D-printed objects have been converted to smart objects or implants using novel 4D-printing systems. Four-dimensional printing is an advanced process that creates the final object by adding smart materials. Human bones are curved along their axes, a morphological characteristic that augments the mechanical strain caused by external forces. Instead of the three axes used in 4D printing, 5D-printing technology uses five axes, creating curved and more complex objects. Nowadays, 6D-printing technology marries the concepts of 4D- and 5D-printing technology to produce objects that change shape over time in response to external stimuli. In future research, it is obvious that printing technology will include a combination of multi-dimensional printing technology and smart materials. Multi-dimensional additive manufacturing technology will drive the printing dimension to higher levels of structural freedom and printing efficacy, offering promising properties for various orthopedic applications.
在过去三十年中，增材制造已从一项创新技术转变为一种在包括骨科在内的不同医疗实践的各个方面越来越容易获得的工具。尽管3D打印技术提供了一种相对廉价、快速且风险较小的制造途径，但对于制造更复杂的物体而言，它仍然相当有限。在过去几年中，使用新型4D打印系统已将稳定的3D打印物体转变为智能物体或植入物。四维打印是一种先进的工艺，通过添加智能材料来制造最终物体。人类骨骼沿其轴线弯曲，这是一种形态特征，可增强外力引起的机械应变。5D打印技术不是使用4D打印中的三个轴，而是使用五个轴，从而制造出弯曲且更复杂的物体。如今，6D打印技术将4D和5D打印技术的概念结合起来，以生产随时间响应外部刺激而改变形状的物体。在未来的研究中，很明显打印技术将包括多维打印技术和智能材料的组合。多维增材制造技术将把打印维度提升到更高水平的结构自由度和打印效率，为各种骨科应用提供有前景的特性。
