The U.S. Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) has given the inexperienced gentle for a brand new scientific trial to check a novel bone adhesive, a fabric designed to bond bones collectively surgically. RevBio, a Boston-based biotech enterprise, will conduct this pilot research with its patented product, Tetranite, supposed to interchange the metallic plates and screws often employed in head surgical procedures for reconnecting cranium sections after mind operations. This progressive adhesive, which promotes new bone development, is self-setting, which means it hardens by itself as soon as utilized, and is injectable, providing potential enhancements in cranial surgical procedure methods. Tetranite’s breakthrough aligns with ongoing improvements in cranioplasty, the place 3D printing has been more and more used to create custom-fitted implants and fashions for cranial reconstruction, additional enhancing the precision and effectiveness of cranial surgical procedure.
Spearheaded by neurosurgeons Timothy Smith and Madison Michael, the trial will enroll 20 sufferers to confirm Tetranite’s security and effectiveness in fixing cranium items instantly following mind surgical procedure. This important step follows RevBio’s profitable preliminary medical evaluations and in depth laboratory analysis. Each Smith and Michael convey a wealth of experience in neurosurgery to the trial. Smith is a outstanding determine at Brigham and Girls’s Hospital and Brigham and Girls’s Faulkner Hospital in Massachusetts and serves as an Affiliate Professor of Neurosurgery at Harvard Medical College. Michael, a seasoned professional at Semmes-Murphey Clinic, holds the place of Professor and Program Director on the College of Tennessee. His specialised pursuits embrace cranium base surgical procedure, mind tumors, microvascular compression syndromes, and endoscopic surgical procedure, additional enhancing the depth of data and expertise driving this pioneering research.
Surgical breakthrough
Craniotomy, a important surgical process for addressing mind tumors, aneurysms, and different intracranial points, entails the elimination of part of the cranium referred to as the cranial flap. Historically, after the surgical procedure, this flap is reattached utilizing metallic {hardware} like plates and screws. Nonetheless, this technique has a number of drawbacks, together with the danger of infections, notably from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks, which might result in severe problems like meningitis, subdural empyema, or cerebral abscesses.
In line with RevBio, these problems are exacerbated by the truth that the normal technique doesn’t seal the kerf line – the hole left by the surgical devices – adequately. This hole not solely facilitates infections but in addition impedes the pure integration of the cranial flap with the encompassing bone. Furthermore, using metallic {hardware} typically necessitates secondary surgical procedures to right points associated to ache and {hardware} protrusion.
Tetranite gives a promising answer to those challenges. It’s designed to fill the lacking bone, seal the surgical web site towards infections, and help osteogenesis – the method of latest bone formation. Over time, Tetranite is resorbed and changed by pure bone, as demonstrated in RevBio’s pre-clinical testing. Its means to offer a organic adherence between the bone flap edges and the cranium whereas concurrently performing as a scaffold for bone regeneration presents a big development over present practices.
Scientific objectives
“We’re trying ahead to evaluating the efficacy of the product that might present speedy, inflexible fixation that might be preferable to present plates and screws, that are the present normal of care,” stated Smith. “We’re excited on the potential that this product may present a organic adherence between the bone flap edges and the cranium, in addition to an structure for osteogenesis over time and stay up for the outcomes of the scientific trial.”
Brian Hess, CEO and Founding father of RevBio, echoes this sentiment, expressing optimism about Tetranite turning into the brand new normal for cranial flap fixation as a consequence of its quite a few advantages over conventional strategies.
RevBio’s latest achievements, together with a $3.4 million Nationwide Institutes of Well being (NIH) grant for the event of Tetranite for treating advanced fractures, additional spotlight the potential of this know-how. The grant will help the corporate’s translational analysis actions via the completion of the scientific trial. Earlier analysis efforts, together with a sheep research assessing the protection and efficacy of Tetranite in a wedge osteotomy fracture mannequin within the distal femur, have proven promising outcomes. These research have indicated that Tetranite not solely supplies speedy load sharing between bone and metallic {hardware} but in addition accelerates therapeutic and reduces the probability of {hardware} failure and delayed therapeutic.

RevBio performed a sheep research of Tetranite utilizing a wedge osteotomy fracture mannequin within the distal femur. Picture courtesy of Enterprise Wire.
“Our pre-clinical research have demonstrated that Tetranite is ready to redistribute a lot of the load from plates and screws thereby decreasing the probability of {hardware} failure and delayed therapeutic,” stated Brittany McDonough, RevBio’s R&D Program Supervisor, who has led the event of the fracture fixation product. “This adhesive materials additionally supplies a resorbable scaffold for the regeneration of bone which accelerates therapeutic inside the first few weeks following a traumatic harm.”
Affected person advantages
3D printing has turn into a super instrument in cranioplasty, notably at main medical establishments the place it’s used for creating patient-specific implants and surgical fashions. For instance, the Mayo Clinic has employed 3D printing to fabricate {custom} cranial implants, enabling a extra exact match and higher aesthetic outcomes. These implants are tailor-made to the precise dimensions of a affected person’s cranium defect.
Equally, the College of Michigan‘s medical middle reported a groundbreaking case the place they employed 3D printing for a fancy cranial reconstruction. The affected person, affected by a big cranial defect, acquired a 3D printed implant that was designed based mostly on their CT scans. This strategy not solely lowered the surgical time but in addition considerably improved the restoration course of, setting a brand new normal for such procedures.
These real-world functions of 3D printing in cranioplasty not solely spotlight the know-how’s transformative impression on neurosurgery but in addition pave the way in which for integrating progressive options like RevBio’s Tetranite. By combining the precision and customization provided by 3D printing with the superior properties of Tetranite, the way forward for surgical healthcare seems tremendous environment friendly and patient-centric. This synergy between cutting-edge 3D printing methods and new biomaterials like Tetranite may set a brand new normal in cranial reconstruction, providing simpler, much less invasive, and faster-healing surgical choices. Because the medical discipline continues to evolve, these developments are poised to turn into the norm, dramatically enhancing affected person outcomes and redefining the chances in neurosurgery.
Because the scientific trial proceeds, RevBio stands on the forefront of a big transition in medical know-how, notably in cranial and orthopedic surgical procedure. Like with 3D printing, the success of Tetranite on this trial couldn’t solely enhance affected person outcomes but in addition probably scale back healthcare prices related to post-surgical problems. The broader implications for cranial surgical procedure and past are substantial, as this progressive strategy may redefine requirements and practices in surgical procedures, enhancing affected person security and restoration.
Subscribe to Our E-mail Publication
Keep up-to-date on all the newest information from the 3D printing trade and obtain info and gives from third social gathering distributors.