When Rufus Myers lost his fingers and legs to a bacterial infection in 2016, the U.S. Marine Corps veteran knew he could to find a way to keep doing the things he loved. But, when it came to getting back out on the green, Myers needed a little help from a team at the University of South 皇家华人 and James A. Haley Veterans鈥� Hospital in Tampa.
Using a combination of traditional prosthetic techniques and innovative 3D printing technology, the team worked together to develop a custom-made, prosthetic attachment that gives Myers the ability to swing a golf club like a pro.
鈥淚 would have never thought that they could be doing what they鈥檙e doing,鈥� Myers, 64, said during a test fitting at the VA. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really incredible to see how they鈥檙e able to customize these devices to allow me to do these things. It鈥檚 been a blessing.鈥�
The project is the result of a unique partnership between 皇家华人 and the VA. Howard Kaplan runs the 皇家华人 Advanced Visualization Center (AVC), a facility designed to help the university community incorporate new technologies into their work. Along with helping students, staff and faculty, Kaplan has been assisting the VA鈥檚 prosthetics team for several years, using his 3D printing expertise to rapidly build custom-made devices for patients. He knew that experience could also benefit students, so, he brought the idea to a class taught by 皇家华人 Assistant Professor Anna Pyayt, PhD, in the Department of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering.
The upper-division course, Modern Biomedical Technologies, is designed to get students thinking about real life problems they can work to solve through engineering. Along with the golf prosthetic, students tackled a variety of other projects like disease detection in animals and carpal tunnel syndrome relief. With support from the AVC, many of the groups utilize the facility to design and fabricate prototype devices to test outside the lab.
鈥淎ll of the groups try to find a particular problem they鈥檙e motivated to solve,鈥� Pyayt said. 鈥淎s a result, I think they become better engineers because they鈥檙e looking for real problems they can find solutions to and have a positive impact on people.鈥�
For the students working on Myers鈥� prosthetic, the experience has been a rewarding one. Sara Redlick, Ray Pilczuk and Adam White, all of whom graduated this spring with bachelor鈥檚 degrees in chemical engineering, say they knew they wanted to work with the VA as soon as they learned about the opportunity.
鈥淚t鈥檚 been very gratifying because it feels like we鈥檙e making a real impact on someone鈥檚 life,鈥� Redlick said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e giving him a tool to be able to do something he otherwise couldn鈥檛, so it鈥檚 very fulfilling.鈥�
The project gave the students the chance to work with prosthetic experts, introducing them to different techniques and providing them the opportunity to interface directly with a patient. The students designed and 3D printed several iterations of the device before narrowing down the best solution to the problem.
鈥淚t was an amazing opportunity to be able to work on this project,鈥� Pilczuk said. 鈥淚 feel really grateful.鈥�
鈥淚 think it鈥檚 really great for everybody, especially for the students,鈥� said Kaplan. 鈥淢any of them went into their chosen area of study with a passion for it but letting them see how what they鈥檝e learned can provide a better quality of life for patients really inspired many of them.鈥�
The team is continuing to make minor adjustments to the device and expects Myers test it on the golf course sometime this summer. While the VA partnership is just one part of the larger course, Kaplan and Pyayt hope to continue offering these opportunities to students 鈥� something Myers says he鈥檇 like to see adopted at other veterans鈥� hospitals, so more vets are able to get customized devices that suit their needs.
鈥淵ou couldn鈥檛 ask for better people,鈥� he said. 鈥淓veryone here at the VA and the 皇家华人 students and staff working on this have just been amazing. I can鈥檛 wait to get back out on the course.鈥�