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Neut, a century-old company specializing in orthopedics, uses 3D technologies as part of its realization of custom-made medical corsets. A real technological shift providing many benefits for patients.
Neut, a French company located in Saint-André-les-Vergers (10), Paris and Versailles, and operating throughout the Ile-de-France and Champagne, makes with know-how multiple tailor-made devices intended in particular for patients requiring the manufacture of corsets (post-operative, treatment, corrective ...) to relieve them.
Manufacturer of high-end high-end orthopedic equipment and constantly looking for new technologies and innovative products to meet the needs of patients and professionals, Neut's teams were convinced by the use of 3D technologies in the manufacture of orthopedic equipment.
The objective: to offer prostheses and orthotics at the cutting edge of technology in terms of manufacturing techniques, materials and materials used, both for serial and custom items.
Increase patient comfort during brace measurements
Before the use of Artec 3D scanners, the process of making corsets was systematically to make a plastered molding, directly on the patient's body. The bust being closed, then poured and carved by hand. This physical and uncomfortable operation that took a lot of time, and could be felt as oppressive, even traumatic, especially for the youngest patients; the phase of cutting the mold with the vibrating saw is also an uncomfortable and impressive step especially for children (and their parents).
This corset-making operation, which took at least three days, was also very messy for the patient. It had to take place in a plaster room and required a lot of handling of molds, sometimes very heavy. While sculpting and grinding used to be done by hand, Neut's orthoprosthetists used 3D scanning technologies to accurately recreate corset models down to the smallest detail.
Now, technology makes it possible to take care of patients who cannot get up by limiting manipulations and safely. The scan offers the possibility of scanning the parts of the body concerned while lying in bed without the need to move, which reduces their discomfort, the stress caused by the operation and the physical effort to be provided. Scanning, carried out with millimeter accuracy, is much faster and much more pleasant for the patient and the applicator.
Mobile 3D technology, more accurate and faster
To carry out scans adapted to its needs in accordance with its specifications and allowing a reproduction of every detail of the patients' bodies, Neut opted for the acquisition of 5 Artec Eva Lite scanners.
In addition to its easy handling, the Eva Lite 3D scanner has a pulsed light technology that does not provide any interference in a hospital setting or in the instrumentation room, which was an important prerequisite given Neut's field of activity, which regularly performs scans in hospitals, after patients have been operated.
"The high accuracy, to the millimetre, of this scanner is also a major advantage over other technologies used such as mobile applications on tablets, which are less accurate and require a lot of manual fixes. "explains Alexandre Neut, Managing Director and Orthoprosthetist of Neut. "Even when the patient moves during the scanning phases, the Artec Eva Lite scanner automatically corrects inaccuracies. »
The mobility of Artec Eva Lite was also a strong point in the choice of Neut. Having the ability to carry your scanner is a major asset for applicators who can perform scans anywhere (hospitals, doctors' offices, rehabilitation centers, etc.).
3D technologies to revolutionize orthopedics
In a second phase, corset models are optimized on a computer using Artec Studio data processing software, which allows users to produce, edit and process 3D data, regardless of the size or resolution of the object.
Each scan then requires a few minutes of computer process. Once scanned, the scans are then processed and exported to a dedicated orthopedic software.
The software makes it possible to make corrections, and adjustments according to pathologies. The file is then sent to a digital milling machine that mills the positive mold from a block of polyurethane (1 kg bust).
For all scanned patients, the software also makes it possible to carry out archiving to update the digital history of certain devices and thus to be able to reuse digitized casts from one year to the next, in case of renewal, thus avoiding Neut the cumbersome storage of plaster positives, which can reach 50kg.
"We were able to pass a technological milestone thanks to the R&D provided by Artec 3D. Now we are able to virtually perform hundreds of manual operations and transcribe them into a digital version. It also turns out that many employees, especially among the youngest among us, are eager for these new technologies that are revolutionizing the daily lives of patients, orthoprosthetists and manufacturing workshops. We are very satisfied with our collaboration with Artec 3D through our partner CADVision who has been providing us with support and the best advice for many years. »
In the future, we plan to expand the use of 3D technologies to design patterns for the manufacture of orthopedic shoes, but also for the upholstery of medical devices, thanks to the possibility of being able to transform a 3D file into 2D.
"Our century-old craftsmanship has evolved and taken the technological turn in order to open up to new ways of doing, seeing, designing," concludes Alexandre Neut
