January 10, 2003

No Bones About It – Engineering and Medicine Build a Better Bone

		At NC State University in May 2002, groundbreaking surgery was the result of teamwork in industrial engineering and veterinary medicine. Rapid prototyping computer images and 3D polyurethane replicas of a German shepherd’s deformed legs by engineers Harrysson (right) and Cormier enabled veterinarian Marcellin-Little (left) to practice the surgery ahead of time. (Photo: Linda Rudd.)

A visit to the doctor helped determine the career course for Ola L. A. Harrysson. His mother was living with the pain of osteoarthritis in her knee. “I went to the hospital with my mother for one of her checkups,” Harrysson said, “and I asked the orthopedic surgeon what it would take for him to do a total knee replacement on my mom. He answered, ‘I would need better implant components that last longer.’ That was when I decided to dedicate my PhD dissertation to developing custom designed knee implants.”

Harrysson, who calls himself an “outdoor person,” enjoys mountain biking, scuba diving, sailing, fishing, hiking, camping and skiing. In Sweden he played clarinet, bassoon and the drums in several different groups. “Nowadays I mostly play the guitar at home when I am alone,” he says. “I like to play and sing, but I am not sure if my neighbors like it!”

Harrysson, assistant professor of industrial engineering at NC State University since January 2002, has made good progress toward this goal. After receiving his bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from Dala University in Sweden, he left his native country in 1995 to continue his education in the U.S., initially with a very different goal in mind. “My university in Sweden had an exchange program with the University of Central Florida that enabled us to go to Orlando to get our master’s in industrial engineering. A few classmates and I liked the idea of sunny Florida for two years,” he said. “We also wanted to learn better English.”

The experience with his mother changed Harrysson’s direction. He decided to remain in Florida to earn a doctorate with a focus on medical applications of a technique called rapid prototyping. Developed about 15 years ago, rapid prototyping has opened a world of possibilities for creating models of body parts, which can eventually lead to the development of better implants.

	Ola L.A. Harrysson, assistant professor of industrial engineering at NC State, first got interested in medically related engineering from watching his mother have to live with the pain of osteoarthritis. (Photo: Roger Winstead.)

In rapid prototyping a computer image of an object is transferred into two-dimensional cross-sections; then machines build a three-dimensional model layer by layer. One machine owned by NC State is a stereolithography machine, which uses a laser to solidify liquid plastic poured in successive layers using a computer image as a template. The computer image is generated from a CAT scan of a body part. “The beauty of this machine is that it can create a computer model of the bones and filter out other tissues,” said Harrysson. Because CAT scans are already in layers they translate well into three-dimensional images for the stereolithography machine. The ability to “see into” the body gives researchers and physicians a host of possible applications for the technology.

Dr. Denis J. Marcellin-Little, associate professor at NC State’s College of Veterinary Medicine, uses the technique to plan surgical correction of bone deformities in dogs. In one recent case, he used models of the deformed rear legs of a German shepherd named Bailey to practice the surgery and make decisions about how to manipulate the bones to correct the deformity. Marcellin-Little worked with Harrysson and Dr. Denis R. Cormier, associate professor of industrial engineering, to build 3-D replicas of Bailey’s deformed legs, allowing him to practice the surgery before performing it on the dog. A similar technique was used recently by surgeons in Los Angeles to practice before separating Guatemalan twins joined at the top of the skull.

With his colleague Cormier, Harrysson hopes to someday establish a special unit in the Department of Industrial Engineering to develop and improve this technology. According to Cormier, “In the long run the objective is to establish a biomedical modeling fabrication center that would involve both human and animal medical applications.”

Harrysson is pleased with the opportunities at NC State. “I think NC State is an excellent place for me to conduct my research,” he said. “We have a great vet l on campus and two good medical schools around the corner. I have met many people here that are interested in my research and that I collaborate with on different projects. The most rewarding aspect of this job is that you are able to work on research that really interests you.” And the most rewarding aspect for Bailey is being able to walk again.

— rudd —

Thanks to the joint efforts of Ola Harrysson and Denis Cormier of industrial engineering and Denis Marcellin-Little of the vet school, Bailey the German shepherd is all smiles after her successful operations. (Photo: Dr. Denis J. Marcellin-Little.)

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