3D Printed Prostheses: The Path from Hype to Reality.

3D printing has an over forty-year history but has only become popular in the last fifteen years with the expiration of restrictive patents which allowed open access and unfettered innovation by a broad range of technology developers. During the last decade interest in prostheses made by 3D printing has grown in popularity. The interest in devices has followed the Gartner Hype Cycle as 3D printing companies and associated organizations have used popular claims about 3D printed prostheses to increase their own company's popularity.

Mechanical testing of transtibial prosthetic sockets: A discussion paper from the American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association Socket Guidance Workgroup.

Background: The advent of novel manufacturing technologies, materials, and socket design concepts could introduce risks to prosthetic limb users, as the existing knowledge base for safe fabrication may not apply. Moreover, although structural test standards exist for mass-produced prosthetic components, they are not applicable to prosthetic sockets.

Methods: The "AOPA Socket Guidance Workgroup" was formed in 2020 to provide the prosthetic community with evidence-based clinical best practices and methods in the field of prosthetic socket structural analysis.