On February 28, 2024, it was reported that scientific researchers proved in a new study that it is now possible to use 3D printing technology to create extremely realistic artificial eyes, and the time required is only the time required to make artificial eyes by hand a small part.
Ten patients received 3D-printed prosthetic eyes in the new study, eight of whom are pictured above. In images (a) and (e), the patient has lost his left eye, so the prosthetic eye is on the right side of the image. The patient has lost his right eye in the remaining images, so the prosthetic eye is on the left.
This advanced 3D printing technology is expected to help create lifelike prosthetic eyes for the 8 million people worldwide who either have abnormal or missing eyes due to congenital disabilities or who have lost one eye and require at least one prosthetic eye.
According to the new technology, a prosthetic eye can be made in just 90 minutes, compared to the eight hours it usually takes a skilled technician or ophthalmologist to make one by hand. Conclusions indicate that manufacturing 3D-printed eyes requires five times less labor than traditional methods.
"Patients are very conscious about wearing prostheses because they don't want to draw attention to themselves," said Johann Reinhard, a researcher at the Fraunhofer Institute for Computer Graphics in Germany and lead author of the study. "Having these more realistic eyes might help them Participate more in social activities." He stressed that the advantage of this technology is to provide patients with more comfortable and lifelike prosthetic eyes, which is expected to improve their confidence and participation in society.
The prosthetic eye is usually placed between the eyelid and an "orbital implant" in the eye socket.
Further research on 3D printing technology in prosthetic eyes
Reinhard said the approach has been successfully used on more than 200 adult patients at Moorfields Eye Hospital (MEH) in London, including the ten patients in the new study.
Typically, ophthalmologists mold a patient's eye socket using a soft molding material that temporarily fills the cavity. This material is then removed and used as a template to create a wax impression that will fit into the person's eye socket. The wax is smoothed, tested, and reshaped until it fits snugly, then used to create the plastic version. The final plastic eye is hand-painted to match the patient's healthy eye.
Additionally, this traditional manufacturing method means that artificial eyes typically need to be replaced every five to ten years, partly due to the plastic's wear and tear. However, since this is a manual process, subsequent prosthetic eyes made for the same individual may differ slightly in appearance and shape.
Data-driven design software process for creating 3D printed prosthetic eye models
Instead, the new 3D printing method involves taking specialized images of the patient's empty socket and healthy eye. These images are then processed and used to draft blueprints, which are then sent to a lab for 3D printing. Reinhard said this printing process usually only takes about 90 minutes, but it can be sped up if multiple eyes are printed simultaneously. For example, 100 prosthetic eyes can be printed in just 10 hours.
These 3D-printed eyes can closely replicate the color, size, and structure of a patient's healthy eye and are particularly good at capturing the colored part of the eye (i.e., the iris) and the white part (i.e., the sclera). Once the eye is made, it only takes 15 to 30 minutes to be installed by an ophthalmologist.
The research team said that about 80% of adults who need artificial eyes could be fitted with artificial eyes this way. However, this is only possible for some patients, such as those with very complex eye sockets, because the software cannot find a matching shape for the prosthetic eye. Additionally, more data is needed to determine whether this technology can also be used to create prosthetic eyes for children, which would require more regulation.
In the future, the team plans to test this approach in more clinics. Sometime this year, they hope to publish the results of a clinical trial exploring the long-term performance of these 3D-printed eyes in 40 MEH patients, comparing them to hand-made prosthetic eyes.
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