ReviewThe archives of bone and joint surgery2024
The use of Three-Dimensional Printing in Orthopaedics: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.
Review in The archives of bone and joint surgery, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- Review
- Granulate-to-Filament: An Extrusion-Mixed PLA-Human Bone Material System for 3D-Printed Bone Scaffolds.Journal of functional biomaterials · 2026Article
- Managing Distal Tibial Fracture Nonunion Using Custom-Made Three-Dimensional Titanium Cage: A Rare Case Report.The archives of bone and joint surgery · 2026Article
- Three-Dimensionally Printed Scaffolds and Drug Delivery Systems in Treatment of Osteoporosis.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Advances in 3D Printing Applications for Personalized Orthopedic Surgery: From Anatomical Modeling to Patient-Specific Implants.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- The use of three-dimensional printing and virtual reality technologies in orthopaedics-with a focus on orthopaedic trauma.Journal of clinical orthopaedics and trauma · 2025Review
- Case Report: Custom made 3D implants for glenoid tumor reconstruction should be designed as reverse total shoulder arthroplasty.Frontiers in surgery · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Objectives: 3D-printing is a rapidly developing technology with applications in orthopaedics including pre-operative planning, intraoperative guides, design of patient specific instruments and prosthetics, and education. Existing literature demonstrates that in the surgical treatment of a wide range of orthopaedic pathology, using 3D printing shows favourable outcomes. Despite this evidence 3D printing is not routinely used in orthopaedic practice. We aim to evaluate the advantages of 3D printing in orthopaedic surgery to demonstrate its widespread applications throughout the field. Methods: We performed a comprehensive systematic review and meta-analysis. AMED, EMBASE, EMCARE, HMIC, PsycINFO, PubMed, BNI, CINAHL and Medline databases were searched using Healthcare Databases Advanced Search (HDAS) platform. The search was conducted to include papers published before 8th November 2020. Clinical trials, journal articles, Randomised Control Trials and Case Series were included across any area of orthopaedic surgery. The primary outcomes measured were operation time, blood loss, fluoroscopy time, bone fusion time and length of hospital stay. Results: A total of 65 studies met the inclusion criteria and were reviewed, and 15 were suitable for the meta-analysis, producing a data set of 609 patients. The use of 3D printing in any of its recognised applications across orthopaedic surgery showed an overall reduction in operative time (SMD = -1.30; 95%CI: -1.73, -0.87), reduction in intraoperative blood loss (SMD = -1.58; 95%CI: -2.16, -1.00) and reduction in intraoperative fluoroscopy time (SMD = -1.86; 95%CI: -2.60, -1.12). There was no significant difference in length of hospital stay or in bone fusion time post-operatively. Conclusion: The use of 3D printing in orthopaedics leads to an improvement in primary outcome measures showing reduced operative time, intraoperative blood loss and number of times fluoroscopy is used. With its wide-reaching applications and as the technology improves, 3D printing could become a valuable addition to an orthopaedic surgeon's toolbox.
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Registered trials
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