Nicholas Puls makes tiny works of art in the hospital workshop where he works. Every brushstroke and dot of color is carefully added.
The soft-spoken ocularist makes fake eyes for people who have had cancer, serious accidents, or were born with one eye or none.
Mr. Puls said: “Everything is unique, so no two patients are the same.”
It is time consuming and requires modeling and painting skills that most people do not have.
Mr Puls said: “It can be a stressful job because you can spend a lot of time making an eye and then look at it and think, ‘No, I’m not happy with that.’
About 10 people a year come to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH) because they need a complete orbital prosthesis. This is a silicone eye socket that holds a mechanical eye.
About 100 people a year need an ocular prosthesis, which is an artificial eye that is placed in the person’s natural eye socket.
“My role is important and I don’t take it lightly,” Mr. Puls said.
“It is very important for patients because it restores their confidence.”
Craig Faull from the Sunshine Coast is one of these people.
He was told about 15 years ago that he had skin cancer on his right eyeball. His doctor said he was like an iceberg.
Mr Faull said: “It was just a little spike at the top, and the roots kept coming down. I’ve never gone this deep before [to remove the cancer].”
When the cancer returned five years later, he underwent a 12-hour procedure.
The eye and bone were removed, and the mesh was reinserted, along with the skin grafts, Mr. Faull said.
The plumber has been cancer-free for ten years, and while he admitted depth perception is sometimes difficult, he has adjusted well.
“In a way, I was lucky. Mr Faull said: “I didn’t suddenly lose my eye because my eyelid slowly closed.”
“I had gotten used to having only one eye.”
But there have been effects on people’s lives and feelings.
“That’s probably the hardest part,” Faull said, referring to how people reacted, like looking or talking.
He has a handmade orbital replacement that he only wears at parties so it doesn’t break.
Mr Faull said: “You feel normal, like no one is looking at you, staring at you or judging you.”
He can’t say enough great things about the people who made his replacement.
“Those people are true, true artists.”
The machine that can print new eyes
But technology is bringing about change, as it has in so many other fields.
The innovative Herston Biomanufacturing Institute is a short walk from the Nicholas Puls store.
When it opens in 2020, the institute will be the first of its kind in Australia. It will focus on 3D scanning, modeling and printing of medical devices, as well as studying how biocompatible materials could be used in the future for implants.
A group of scientists, led by senior researcher James Novak, is testing 10 patients to see how 3D-printed eyes look and feel compared to eyes made by hand.
“We have this amazing technology that can 3D print eyes in full color. We think it’s amazing, but what do the patients think? said Dr. Novak.
The team creates the fake eyes using 3D scanning and high-resolution photos.
Dr Novak said: “By digitizing part of this process, we can take a picture of the patient’s existing eye, mirror it to the other side, and make an exact copy of that.”
“In the past, that had to be done by hand and there was obviously room for error. The skill of the ocularist also played an important role in the accuracy of the eye.”
Technology could make things more reliable and it also saves time.
Dr Novak said: “Once we have digitized and created the patient’s first eye, we can 3D print it as often as we need and send it to the patient if they have lost their eye, been injured or simply need to get it back. -Oops.”
“It’s something we can do quickly, cheaply, and it’s going to make a big difference, even if it’s a small thing.”
If patients are happy with the printed versions, the next step would be a larger trial of orbital and ocular prostheses.
According to Dr. Novak, a clinical trial will allow us to assess material compatibility and long-term safety in a much larger patient population.
The RBWH Foundation has been wonderful in sponsoring this small study, but to do a much larger cohort study, getting some money would allow us to do it on a larger scale.
So is the machine ready to replace the human?
Dr. Novak and Mr. Puls disagree.
Dr. Novak added: “I don’t think we’re going to replace it very quickly with digital technology. Once we 3D print the eyeballs, they still need to be adjusted to fit correctly in the eye socket.
The optimal method, in our opinion, is a hybrid one that combines components of what a human can do well with what a 3D printer can do well.
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Categories: Technology
Source: vtt.edu.vn