Three years ago, Glenn Green, MD, Associate Professor of Pediatric Otolaryngology at the University of Michigan, successfully treated an infant suffering from tracheobronchomalacia. This serious, and often fatal, condition affects the development of a child’s airways and can prevent infants from breathing properly.

Dr. Green was able to save baby Kaibu’s life by creating a 3d-printed airway splint from biologically compatible material that would eventually dissolve without complication, allowing the infant’s trachea to grow naturally. Kaibu is now four year’s old, and the results of his procedure have been duplicated twice more, both successfully thus far.

For more video information about 3D bio-printing and the tracheal splint, click here.