3D printer makes 'magic arms' for 2-year-old girl in North Carolina

A 3D printer is making a difference in the life of a two-year-old girl who was born with a rare disease the crippled her joints and limbs, a tech site reported. Engineers at the Nemours/Alfred I. duPont Hospital [Wilmington, North Carolina] for Children used a 3D printer to create a durable exoskeleton that helps her lift her arms, Mashable said. “She outgrew the first one and now we’re on our second one and it’s still evolving... It’s still growing into this incredible prosthetic that helps her to use her arms,” Mashable quoted Emma’s mother, Megan Lavelle, as saying. Emma was born with arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC), which prevents her from doing thing like playing with blocks, bringing food to her mouth or hugging her mother, Mashable said. However, with the supportive plastic vest, she was able to lift candy to her mouth for the first time. She has come to call the exoskeleton – the Wilmington Robotic Exoskeleton (WREX) – her “magic arms.” Emma is one of the first patients to wear the WREX, which is made of hinged metal bars, resistance bands and tiny 3D printed parts. Presently, 15 of the hospital’s smallest patients are wearing the lightweight vests. "The ease of 3D printing makes customization of parts possible. When a piece breaks, on-demand printers enable quick fixes. If a child outgrows a vest, the engineers can simply print larger parts out," Mashable said. — LBG, GMA News