SynthesisEuropean spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society2025
Clinical applications of 3D printing in spine surgery: a systematic review.
Synthesis in European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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
10 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Clinical Application of FDM 3D Printing in Surgery and Traumatology: A Systematic Review.Annals of biomedical engineering · 2026Pooled it
- Three-Dimensional Printing in Pediatric Orthopaedics: Cost Analysis and Emerging Applications.Journal of the Pediatric Orthopaedic Society of North America · 2026Review
- Infectious Spondylodiscitis of Bacterial Causes in Adults: Epidemiology, Pathophysiology, Diagnostic and Treatment Challenges.Microorganisms · 2026Review
- Impact of additive manufacturing process of titanium implants on peri-implant human bone.Oral and maxillofacial surgery · 2026Article
- Clinical efficacy of 3D-printed guide plates in single-level lumbar degenerative disease: a retrospective comparative study.BMC surgery · 2026Article
- Case Report: Patient-specific 3D-printed preoperative simulation for tailored resection and reconstruction in complex vertebral tumors: a case of giant recurrent chondrosarcoma at the cervicothoracic junction.Frontiers in surgery · 2026Article
- Article
- Using Patient-Specific 3D-Printed C1-C2 Interfacet Spacers for the Treatment of Type 1 Basilar Invagination: A Clinical Case Report.Biomimetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Advances in 3D Printing Applications for Personalized Orthopedic Surgery: From Anatomical Modeling to Patient-Specific Implants.Journal of clinical medicine · 2025Review
- Personalized porous tantalum implants crafted via 3D printing: new horizons in complex cervical-thoracic spinal fusion.Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeThe objective of this systematic review is to present a comprehensive summary of existing research on the use of 3D printing in spinal surgery.
methodsThe researchers conducted a thorough search of four digital databases (PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Embase) to identify relevant studies published between January 1999 and December 2022. The review focused on various aspects, including the types of objects printed, clinical applications, clinical outcomes, time and cost considerations, 3D printing materials, location of 3D printing, and technologies utilized. Out of the 1620 studies initially identified and the 17 added by manual search, 105 met the inclusion criteria for this review, collectively involving 2088 patients whose surgeries involved 3D printed objects.
resultsThe studies presented a variety of 3D printed devices, such as anatomical models, intraoperative navigational templates, and customized implants. The most widely used type of objects are drill guides (53%) and anatomical models (25%) which can also be used for simulating the surgery. Custom made implants are much less frequently used (16% of papers). These devices significantly improved clinical outcomes, particularly enhancing the accuracy of pedicle screw placement. Most studies (88%) reported reduced operation times, although two noted longer times due to procedural complexities. A variety of 3DP technologies and materials were used, with STL, FDM, and SLS common for models and guides, and titanium for implants via EBM, SLM, and DMLS. Materialise software (Mimics, 3-Matic, Magics) was frequently utilized. While most studies mentioned outsourced production, in-house printing was implied in several cases, indicating a trend towards localized 3D printing in spine surgery.
conclusions3D printing in spine surgery, a rapidly growing area of research, is predominantly used for creating drill guides for screw insertion, anatomical models, and innovative implants, enhancing clinical outcomes and reducing operative time. While cost-efficiency remains uncertain due to insufficient data, some 3D printing applications, like pedicle screw drill guides, are already widely accepted and routinely used in hospitals.
Indexed as
Identifiers
39774918What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.