Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
3D-printed vertebrae for spinal tumor surgery safety and results
By Wang Q et al.·2026·Department of pathology, China·View original on Europe PMC →
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Original publication title: Efficacy and safety of 3D-printed artificial vertebral bodies for spinal tumor resection and reconstruction: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
Plain-English summary
This study looked at how effective and safe 3D-printed artificial vertebral bodies are for rebuilding the spine after surgery to remove tumors. Researchers reviewed data from 12 studies involving 489 patients, comparing those who received the 3D implants to those who had traditional titanium mesh cages. They found that patients with the 3D implants experienced less blood loss during surgery and had shorter operation times. However, those with the titanium mesh showed better early improvements in certain measures of recovery. Overall, while the 3D group had some benefits, the titanium mesh group had more noticeable early recovery results.
Abstract
<h4>Objective</h4>To investigate the efficacy and safety of 3D printed artificial vertebral body in spinal reconstruction after total en bloc spondylectomy (TES) for spinal tumors.<h4>Methods</h4>We searched PubMed, Embase, ScienceDirect, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, China National Knowledge Infrastructure (CNKI), Wan Fang Database, and Wei Pu Database by computer to collect controlled clinical studies on the efficacy and safety of 3D printed artificial vertebral body and titanium mesh cages (TMCs) in the treatment of spinal tumors after total en bloc spondylectomy (TES) from database establishment to February 2024.<h4>Results</h4>A total of 10 cohort studies and 2 randomized controlled study with a total of 489 patients were included in this study, including 234 patients in the 3D group and 255 patients in the TMC group. The 3D group had lower intraoperative blood loss than the TMC group [mean difference (MD) = - 1.47, 95% CI (- 2.38, -0.55), P = 0.002] and operation time was shorter than that of the TMC group [MD = -0.65, 95% CI (- 1.23, - 0.07), P = 0.03]. Early postoperative JOA scores improved more significantly in the TMC group [MD = 0.50, 95% CI (0.18, 0.82), P = 0.002].<h4>Conclusion</h4>The 3D printing group demonstrated advantages in early postoperative pain relief (VAS) and spinal sequence maintenance (loss of Cobb angle), while there were no statistically significant differences between the two groups in Frankel grading and neurological improvement rates. Notably, the traditional titanium mesh group showed more significant improvements in early postoperative JOA scores.
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Search related cases →Original publication on Europe PMC: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42050704