Implant Solution Restores Cranial Voids and Corrects Deformities

A clear, patient specific implant enables neurosurgeons to reconstruct the cranium and observe neuroanatomy and critical functional components.

The Longeviti Neuro Solutions (Longeviti; Hunt Valley, MD, USA) ClearFit implant is a polymethyl-methacrylate (PMMA) construct that is custom made using a patient's computerized tomography (CT) scans and a novel three dimensional (3D) printing process to ensure a precise fit and restorative contour. Neurosurgeons can order a ClearFit by uploading a CT scan to Longeviti's Secure File Exchange. The CT scans are converted to a CAD/CAM compatible file, following which an expert design team plans a personalized implant for the patient.

The ClearFit implant is available in three different designs: standard, complex, and single-stage. The devices are provided sterile to the surgeon, and are fixated to the surrounding bone using commercially available fasteners. The clear, radiopaque, and sonolucent implant enables surgeons the newfound ability to see important neuroanatomy through the implant, providing increased ultrasound visibility for post-operative monitoring.

“For patients who require a cranioplasty as a result of trauma and/or restorative surgery, there is no one-size-fits-all treatment option,” said Jesse Christopher, co-founder and CEO of Longeviti. “Building on the recent launch of the InvisiShunt and our 'first-in-human' experiences published in several journals such as Operative Neurosurgery, Longeviti is proud to be able to offer patients innovative, customizable solutions for various neurological procedures.”

“The real advantage to this system is the ability to see what's underneath the cranioplasty,” said Justin Caplan, MD, an assistant professor of neurosurgery at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (Baltimore, MD, USA). “Now, instead of having to worry if there is blood accumulating putting pressure on the brain, the surgeon can see this directly right up until the wound is closed. Here the advantage is clear!”

Ideally, surgeons restore the skull in the secondary cranial reconstruction procedure using with the same piece of bone removed during the original operation, which is stored in a freezer between operations. In some cases, surgeons must substitute the original bone with a custom-made implant.

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