’Smart’ 3D-printed braces could improve scoliosis treatment

A new type of lightweight 3D-printed back brace capable of sensing how effectively it fits patients could lead to improved treatment for scoliosis, its developers say. Scoliosis, a common form of spine deformity, affects around three percent of the population, most often between the ages of 10 and 15. It can be corrected in younger people by a back brace, which is worn until the child stops growing. While back brace treatment is effective, it can be uncomfortable and can require a time-consuming trial-and-error process to find the best fit for each patient. A team of engineers and medics from the UK and the United States have combined polypropylene, a lightweight recyclable plastic, with carbon nanotubes to create a cellular material capable of sensing the amount of strain (and stress) it experiences while in use. The researchers say this material could be used to create a 'smart' brace capable of detecting the pressures it applies on the human body, allowing better fine-tuning of the brace and making the process of treatment more comfortable. In a new paper published in the journal ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces , the University of Glasgow-led team describe how the carbon nanotubes, placed throughout a material known as polypropylene random copolymer, gave it the ability to form an electrically-conductive network across its structure.