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International Journal of Bioprinting Design of SLM-Ta artificial vertebral body

et al. fabricated trabecular Ta specimens using laser of sidewall curvature on the mechanical properties and
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powder bed fusion (LPBF) and investigated the effects deformation behavior of these AVBs was investigated
of annealing temperature and oxygen content on their through compression tests and finite element analysis.
mechanical properties. Qin and colleagues performed The objective was to optimize AVB’s overall structure to
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hot isostatic pressing to LPBF-printed TPMS porous Ta, effectively reduce the stress shielding effect, enhance load-
significantly improving its compressive strength without bearing functionality, and align its mechanical properties
compromising plasticity. Functional gradient Ta lattice with those of the human cortical bone. This study aimed
structures developed by Chen et al. using LPBF exhibited to develop a novel Ta AVB with the potential to enhance
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excellent manufacturability, with a porosity deviation of osseointegration and mitigate the risk of bone resorption
less than 5.13%. in cervical fusion segments and degenerative diseases in
the adjacent segments. The logical flow of the introduction
Extensive research has been conducted on the optimal section of the article is shown in Figure 1.
design of spinal implant structures. However, there
remains a notable lack of studies focused on optimizing the 2. Materials and methods
overall architecture of AVBs to minimize stress shielding
while maximizing load-bearing capacity. Moreover, 2.1. Design method
investigations into the mechanical properties of SLM- The Ta AVB was designed to imitate human vertebrae
fabricated Ta AVBs are limited, especially in comparison and is composed of a thin-walled and lattice structure,
with polymer- and Ti alloy-based spinal implants. as shown in Figure 2. The height of the AVB was set at
24 mm, and the end face was designed to be elliptical,
In this study, novel Ta AVBs were developed by with a long diameter of 16 mm and a short diameter of
integrating topology optimization and lattice structure 12.6 mm. The thin-walled structure functioned similarly to
design methods and fabricated using SLM. The influence the cortical bone of the human vertebrae and was used to

Figure 1. Logical flow of Introduction section. Abbreviations: HA: Hydroxyapatite; PEEK: Polyetheretherketone; Ta: Tantalum; TES: Total en bloc
spondylectomy; Ti: Titanium.

Volume 11 Issue 4 (2025) 167 doi: 10.36922/IJB025150133