Osteo3D is a 3D printing company that offers doctors in India cost-effective surgical models. Its cloud-based platform puts medical guides in the hands of doctors, seeing use in over 350 procedures already.

When it comes to healthcare, 3D printing offers doctors the chance to physically hold and analyse a problem before surgery. For prostheses it’s proven that this method results in greater accuracy, precision and a reduction in wait times for patients too. In surgery, efforts are ongoing to gather the data.

One difficulty of 3D printing’s implementation worldwide though is a lack of awareness and, often, a high price tag. However, Osteo3D – a 3D printing company based in Bengaluru, India — is helping remedy this by making 3D printed medical guides and models for an affordable price. So far, the company has aided 350 cases across India and helped doctors effectively plan for surgery.

The company was founded in 2014 by former GE employee, Deepak Raj. Under the name DF3D, Raj began by selling 3D printed objects such as jewelry. It took just six months of poor sales for Raj to shift the business’ focus to healthcare. He explains: “We were bleeding and couldn’t sustain ourselves.”

The solution to both Raj’s business woes, and now a number of medical teams’ surgery prep bottlenecks is a proprietary 3D model and quotation engine. Under the new name of Osteo3D, Raj and his team developed a cloud-based platform for doctors to upload their medical scans. This then returns accurate, 3D printable models and the option to print them.

Osteo3D Partners with Doctors Across India

Most doctors in India may have previously relied on 2D scans solely for surgery preparation and planning, or turning to expensive 3rd party software for model generation. Osteo3D claims its alternative platform offers a quick and inexpensive alternative, linking to a professional printing service.

The company prints the models in-house and all processes are ISO certified. So far, 3D printing has been hugely beneficial for many patients. In 2015, a five-month-old girl from Chitradurga, Karnataka, underwent surgery for craniosynostosis. This condition means that parts of her skull were fusing together, a deformation that hinders brain development.

Following a successful surgery to correct the issue, Osteo3D made a helmet that was employed by the doctors to apply corrective pressure on the skull. Thanks to Osteo3D’s platform and in-house printers, it took just 3-4 days and cost only Rs20,000 (around $309) to fabricate.

The company acknowledges some limitations on its current operation though. Many replacement body parts, particularly bone and joints, require metal 3D printers — something currently too cost prohibitive for Osteo3D. However they do work with external partners who can fabricate metal implants.

Currently 120 doctors work with the company’s platform. Although there is a long way to go before Raj can bring 3D printing to every doctor in the country, Osteo3D has made a fantastic start.

Source: Forbes India