Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2020;5(9):637-639.
doi: 10.1038/s41578-020-00234-3. Epub 2020 Aug 12.

The global rise of 3D printing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Yu Ying Clarrisa Choong #  1 , Hong Wei Tan #  2 , Deven C Patel  3 , Wan Ting Natalie Choong  1 , Chun-Hsien Chen  1 , Hong Yee Low  2 , Ming Jen Tan  1 , Chandrakant D Patel  1   4 , Chee Kai Chua  2
Affiliations

The global rise of 3D printing during the COVID-19 pandemic

Yu Ying Clarrisa Choong et al. Nat Rev Mater. 2020.

Abstract

3D printing enables on-demand solutions for a wide spectrum of needs ranging from personal protection equipment to medical devices and isolation wards. This versatile technology is suited to address supply-demand imbalances caused by socio-economic trends and disruptions in supply chains.

Keywords: Business and industry; Health care; Mechanical engineering; SARS-CoV-2; Scientific community.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interestsThe authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Applications of 3D printing in the fight against COVID-19.
3D printing is being used to provide many different solutions to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, ranging from personal protective equipment (PPE) to emergency dwellings to isolate patients. CPAP: continuous positive airways pressure; BiPAP: Bilevel positive airway pressure. 3D-printed respirator image adapted from https://www.ciirc.cvut.cz/covid-2/, copyright CIIRC CTU 2020; image of 3D-printed mask from https://www.3dwasp.com/en/3d-printed-mask-from-3d-scanning/, courtesy of WASP#3dwasp 3dwasp.com; image of 3D-printed isolation ward adapted with permission from http://www.winsun3d.com/En/News/news_inner/id/543, Yingchuang Building Technique (Shanghai) Co., Ltd (WinSun); image of the 3D-printed medical manikin from https://creatz3d.com.sg/3d-printed-medical-manikins-become-effective-training-aids-for-respiratory-swab-collection/, courtesy of Creatz3D & AuMed https://www.creatz3d.com.sg; image of 3D-printed swab from https://envisiontec.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/EnvisionTEC-NP-Swabs.pdf, courtesy of EnvisionTEC; image of Charlotte valve adapted with permission from https://www.isinnova.it/easy-covid19/, Isinnova.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Chua, C. K. & Leong, K. F. 3D Printing and additive manufacturing - principles and applications. 5th edn (World Scientific Publishing, 2017).
    1. He, H., Gao, M., Illés, B. & Molnar, K. 3D printed and electrospun, transparent, hierarchical polylactic acid mask nanoporous filter. Int. J. Bioprint.6(4) 10.18063/ijb.v6i4.278 (2020). - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Bishop, E. G. & Leigh, S. J. Using large-scale additive manufacturing (LSAM) as a bridge manufacturing process in response to shortages in PPE during the COVID-19 outbreak. Int. J. Bioprint.6(4) 10.18063/ijb.v6i4.281 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Celik, H. K. et al. Design and additive manufacturing of a medical face shield for healthcare workers battling coronavirus (COVID-19). Int. J. Bioprint.6(4) 10.18063/ijb.v6i4.286 (2020). - PMC - PubMed
    1. Iyengar K, Bahl S, Raju V, Vaish A. Challenges and solutions in meeting up the urgent requirement of ventilators for COVID-19 patients. Diabetes & Metabolic Syndrome: Clinical Research & Reviews. 2020;14:499–501. doi: 10.1016/j.dsx.2020.04.048. - DOI - PMC - PubMed