Formlabs recently made an exciting announcement about their latest addition to healthcare.
They have introduced two specialized materials, Dental LT Comfort Resin and Biomed Durable Resin, designed specifically for their Form 3B 3D printer series. These materials are a game-changer for point-of-care facilities, medical device manufacturing, and dental and orthodontic labs.
The president of Formlabs‘ Healthcare division, Guillaume Bailliard, expressed his delight for these new resins.
By adding these materials,
Formlabs has expanded its library to over 40 different types,
giving dental and medical experts the tools they need to advance the field of device development.
Formlabs’s Dental LT Comfort Resin
Let’s take a closer look at these materials. First, we have Dental LT Comfort Resin, a durable and flexible material. It is perfect for creating long-term occlusal splints, nightguards, and bleaching trays. With this resin, dental practices can directly print flexible splints that are not only biocompatible but also comfortable for patients.
The best part is that these splints require minimal polish to achieve high optical transparency for long-term use. The advantages are substantial in terms of price and effectiveness.
With a lead time of 1 to 7 days,
outsourcing a single occlusal splint can run you between $100 and $200. But when using Dental LT Comfort Resin and in-house 3D printing,
the price drops to an amazing $5 to $7 and the lead time is cut in half to just 2 to 3 hours.
Formlab’s BioMed Durable Resin
Now let’s move on to the second material, BioMed Durable Resin. This resin holds a USP Class VI rating and is manufactured in an FDA-registered, ISO 13485 facility. It serves a variety of applications, including long-term skin contact and short-term tissue, bone, and dentin contact.
BioMed Durable Resin addresses the need for a biocompatible material that can withstand impact, rough handling,
and pressure for patient-specific devices, procedure-specific instruments, and medical devices.
Its impressive impact-, shatter-, and abrasion-resistant properties,
along with excellent clarity and surface finish, make it an ideal choice for durable patient-specific instruments and customizable surgical instruments.
This means medical devices can now be hit with a surgical mallet or shaken with a cutting saw without compromising their performance.
The advantages of this novel material have already been felt by Mauricio Toro, CEO and co-founder of TechFit, a PSI provider working with doctors to design and 3D print surgical instruments.
He applauds the improved mechanical qualities, which offer more design flexibility and broader indications while retaining the essential biological properties for obtaining trustworthy surgical results.
Innovations in Medical 3D printing
In summary,
Formlabs’ latest healthcare-focused materials, Dental LT Comfort Resin and Biomed Durable Resin have opened up exciting possibilities for professionals in the dental and medical fields.
With the ability to 3D print biocompatible, durable, and highly functional devices, the boundaries of device development are being pushed further than ever before.
These advancements in additive manufacturing are set to revolutionize the way healthcare professionals approach their work,
bringing cost savings, improved efficiency, and exceptional patient outcomes.
