# Personalized Spinal Bracing Made Reality with Additive Manufacturing

- Show: [Additive Snack](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack)
- Published: 2024-04-23
- Length: 36m
- Episode: 13
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing
- Listen: https://share.transistor.fm/s/30e2ac63

## Summary

Lisa Tweardy, CEO of MIGN, and Dr. Baron Lonner explain how their company uses industrial 3D printing to create personalized spinal braces for scoliosis patients, replacing bulky traditional devices with lightweight, breathable alternatives. Orthotist Isabelle (Liz) Rauch details the digital workflow that eliminates plaster casts, allowing for precise 3D correction and improved patient comfort, while patient Livi Lasner discusses her personal journey and her nonprofit, Save a Spine, which helps fund access to these expensive treatments. The episode highlights MIGN's proprietary Genesis software, which automates mass personalization by translating patient scans into production-ready 3D geometry, enabling global distribution and equitable healthcare access.

## Chapters

- [0:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=4) Introduction: Lisa Tweardy, Dr. Baron Lonner, Isabelle Rauch, and Livi Lasner
- [1:47](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=107) Livi Lasner's personal scoliosis journey and brace compliance
- [3:29](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=209) Dr. Lonner on scoliosis pathology and the failure of traditional braces
- [9:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=551) MIGN's mission for equitable design and mass personalization
- [11:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=709) Isabelle Rauch on the digital workflow and elimination of plaster casts
- [15:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=913) Dr. Lonner on 3D printing's impact on surgical and non-surgical treatment options
- [19:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=1170) MIGN's Genesis software and end-to-end digital design workflow
- [22:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=1331) Save a Spine's mission to provide financial access to braces
- [23:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=1419) Adoption hurdles and the importance of broadcasting 3D printing benefits
- [29:13](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing#t=1753) MIGN's expansion into upper extremity and whole-body bracing

## Topics

- [Medical & health devices](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/medical-devices)
- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Prototyping & iteration](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/prototyping)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- MIGN (company)
- Save a Spine (other)
- Orthotic Consultants (company)
- Mount Sinai (company)
- Restore 3D (company)
- Milwaukee brace (product)
- Genesis (product)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Crispin Weinberg | 3D printed patient-specific models for surgeons](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2022-05-27-crispin-weinberg-3d-printed-patient-specific-models-for-surgeons) (Being an Engineer)
- [Scott Summit | Industrial Design, 3D Printing, & Life-Changing Products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/being-an-engineer/2022-12-02-scott-summit-industrial-design-3d-printing-life-changing-products) (Being an Engineer)
- [42. World's Most Advanced Prosthetics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2021-11-02-42-worlds-most-advanced-prosthetics) (The Next Byte Podcast)
- [194. You Don’t Stand Straight But This AI Wearable Will Fix It](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-10-01-194-you-dont-stand-straight-but-this-ai-wearable-will-fix-it) (The Next Byte Podcast)
- [Regulatory & Quality Perspectives of 3D Printing in the Medical Device Industry](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/global-medical-device-podcast/2022-06-22-regulatory-quality-perspectives-of-3d-printing-in-the-medical-device-industry) (Global Medical Device Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/additive-snack/2024-04-23-personalized-spinal-bracing-made-reality-with-additive-manufacturing. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Additive Snack.