Osteopore International wins Made in Singapore – Medical award

Once its 3D-printed bone graft biodegrades, it leaves behind viable new bone in its place.

Medical technology firm Osteopore International has bagged the Made in Singapore – Medical trophy for its Osteomesh for Orthopaedic device at the recently concluded Made in Singapore and Designed in Singapore awards presented by Singapore Business Review.

Now in its fourth year, the awards event lauds manufacture and product design excellence in various industries.

Osteomesh for Orthopaedic is a structured bone graft that is shaped to fill the void created in trauma cases in the extremities such as the shin bone or radius bone. Its unique architecture allows for rapid saturation with marrow, blood and nutrients, thus providing the patient’s own cells with chemical signals that are required for bone growth and remodeling.

The device is 3D printed with porosity to facilitate bone tissue and micro-blood vessels integration.

The mesh offers a rigid yet flexible scaffold with sufficient mechanical strength that supports bone in-growth. As the new material will biodegrade over a period of 18-24 months, it will leave behind viable new bone in its place.

Ten successful cases have been conducted in Singapore, Germany, Oman and Australia using Osteomesh, varying from eight years to six months post operatively.

The first human case of a 36cm tibia reconstruction took place in 2017. Two years post surgery, the patient was able to walk with support and the Osteomesh device was observed to have biodegraded.

Osteopore specialises in the production of 3D printed bioresorbable implants used in conjunction with surgical procedures to assist with natural stages of bone healing. The company was founded in November 2003 in a bid to commercialise 3D printed scaffold technology to aid the adoption of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine in clinical treatment.

Osteopore’s other product is the Osteoplug, a bioresorbable implant used for covering trephination burr holes and other cranial defects in neurosurgery. Long-term clinical trials showed significant bone regeneration, re-covering the burr hole as the material is resorbed by the body and replaced by autologous bone.

The firm’s products are made of a biocompatible polymer called polycaprolactone (PCL), which is bioresorbable, malleable, slow-degrading and possesses mechanical strength to trabecular bone.

According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Osteopore is at the forefront of research and development (R&D) within the tissue engineering industry, having reached a market size of US$90b in 2010.

“Repairing skull fractures has traditionally been an expensive, painful process filled with unwanted side effects. Osteopore’s innovative technology significantly mitigates these risks, and provides the healthcare industry with a better and safer way to care for patients,” WIPO said.