St. Louis, Missouri-based CoreLink, LLC, a spinal implant company, has announced the full commercial release of its Foundation 3D Interbody Cage Systems for cervical and lumbar fusions.
CoreLink: Launch of Foundation 3D Printed Interbody Cage Systems
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Secondary#lumbarfusion#cervicalfusion#foundation3dinterbodycagesystem#strutsure
According to the company, “The titanium devices utilize additive manufacturing to create Mimetic Metal™ technology that mimics key characteristics of natural bone, featuring 100% open-pore architecture and micro roughened porosity with significant hydro-wicking properties.”
“The lumbar devices incorporate patent pending StrutSure technology featuring an asymmetric load sharing support structure with an interconnected lattice that is designed to provide the optimal balance between strength, stiffness, and stability.”
“This unique to market support structure minimizes overall implant density, providing for good imaging characteristics. Internal testing shows the center of the Straight Foundation 3D Lumbar interbody has a modulus of elasticity less than PEEK which may reduce stress shielding and enable the benefits of Wolff’s Law in three key areas: the interface with the vertebral endplates, the central graft column, and inside the walls of the device itself.”
“I love how these cages image, both intraoperative and post op, without the typical hardware-associated artifacts we are used to with metal cages,” commented Justin Owen, M.D., neurosurgeon in Slidell, Louisiana, on his experience with the Foundation 3D Cervical cages.
“I appreciate the possibility of the endplates growing around the porous metal surfaces, which would seem to provide faster stabilization towards fusion before growing across the entire disc space. This is a great system, for me and my patients.”
Jay Bartling, CoreLink’s CEO, told OTW, “The Foundation 3D project had a clear goal: stretch the capabilities of additive manufacturing to create an interbody device that most closely resembled the structure and properties of natural bone.”
“When accomplished we felt this would give patients the best chance for achieving a bony fusion. Through research, collaboration with physicians, and many iterations of product concepts we believe this goal was accomplished. Feedback from early-adopters has been fantastic, and we want surgeons to know that this is just the start.”
“As a little background reference, CoreLink designs, develops, and manufactures these devices internally and will utilize this advantage to quickly incorporate these Mimetic Metal and StrutSure design technologies into stand-alone interbodies, expanding interbodies and corpectomy cages.”
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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