A Rhode Island man designed a first-of-its-kind spinal implant made from human bone tissue, NBC affiliate WJAR reported Feb. 23.
The implant was designed by Dom Messerli at the New England Medical Innovation Center in Providence. The pearl-shaped implant is designed to treat spinal implants.
The rehydrated implant becomes flexible and over time will become natural bone, according to the report. The first case with the implant was completed in 2019. More recently, a 70-year-old woman received the implant and is recovering with good results.
John Lane, MD, a surgeon with New York City-based Hospital for Special Surgery, told the station the biologic implant eliminates the risk of complications associated with cement fracture treatments.