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A Welsh man is thought to become one of the first trauma patients in the world to have
reconstructive facial surgery using parts printed by a 3D printer.
Stephen Power was left disfigured after a motorbike accident, where he broke two arms,
a leg and the whole centre of his face, including two cheekbones, an eyesocket and his jaw.
Basically, the left side of my face. They was unable to put back together or put back
together how they should because of the swelling around my eye. They didn't want to make any
sort of efforts to replace my eye because the bone underneath my eye had crumbled and
for them to move that, they would have had to move my eye, which the eye team in the
hospital didn't want them to attempt, just in case I was able to gain vision back in
that eye.
Doctors believe the best way to restore his face was by using 3D modelling techniques
and 3D printing to make specific parts for the shape of his face.
Well, basically what we are doing is we're taking a CT scan and creating a 3D model,
a virtual 3D model in a special computer program from the CT scan, which enables us to actually
do the surgery on the virtual patient before you do it on the patient.
3D printing allows complex shapes to be built up in layers from particles, plastics or metals,
and scientists one day hope to print human organs.