Farmer who lost half his skull in after falling from a building has it rebuilt using 3D printed titanium mesh 

·        46-year-old Hu Wei was injured after falling from the third floor of his home

·        Has now had skull re-built with a titanium mesh created by a 3D printer

·        Implant was inserted under Hu's skin and attached to his skull 

·        Doctors hope it will allow his brain to heal, helping him to speak again 

A Chinese farmer left with a large chunk missing from his skull has undergone groundbreaking surgery with the help of a 3D printer - and may re-gain the ability to speak as a result. 

Hu Wei, 46, was injured after falling down three floors of his home in Xi'an, the capital city of the Shaanxi province in north west China.

He smashed his head against some wood, leaving him with a large part of his skull caved in.

This damaged his brain, causing him to lose vision in his left eye, experience double vision, and leaving him unable to speak or write. 

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After falling down three floors of his home in Xi'an, Shaanxi province, in north west China, Hu damaged his brain, causing blindess in his left eye, double vision and leaving him unable to speak or write

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He has now undergone pioneering surgery to have a customised titanium mesh implanted into his skull

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The custom-made implant was inserted under Hu's skin and attached to his skull during a three-and-a-half hour operation at Xijing hospital, in north west China

His wife said he could still walk and understand the jokes made about him by people living in his neighbourhood, who have called him the 'half head man' or 'Frankenstein', according to the International Business Times.

Now, in a surgery that was one of the first of its kind, doctors at Xijing Hospital replaced his skill with a customised 3D printed titanium mesh that was moulded in the shape of the part of his skull that had been lost.

Doctors hope the surgery will not only restore the shape of Hu's skull but also may allow the brain to repair itself and grow so Hu can regain the ability to speak.

The hospital brought in doctors from around the world to help come up with a solution to Hu's injuries.

After deciding to implant the 3D printed titanium mesh, the surgery was performed on the 28th August and lasted for three and a half hours.

The lead surgeon was Professor Shu Mao Guo, head of the department of Plastic Surgery at Xijing Hospital, and has published several papers researching advancements in medicine to restore tissues or organs.

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The hospital brought in doctors from around the world to help come up with a solution to Hu's injuries

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Hu's wife said people living in his neighbourhood have called him the 'half headman' or 'Frankenstein' (

Hu's scalp and meninges - the protective membranes covering the brain - were melded together after the accident. They had to be peeled apart before the titanium mesh could be implanted.

The surgeons also had to separate temporal muscles at the front of the head without causing further injury. 

The printing materials were made specifically for Hu in Belgium, at one of the world's few specialist 3D printing facilities. They have been sponsored by Stryker, an American medical device manufacturer.

Titanium mesh was chosen because it usually doesn't cause any adverse reaction- although doctors now will watch Hu to make sure the implant is not rejected by his body.

THE 3D PRINTING REVOLUTION 

Using 3D printers create customised replacement body parts is revolutionising medicine.

This year, surgeons in China successfully implanted an artificial 3D-printed vertebra into a 12-year-old bone cancer patient to help him walk again.

Doctors at Peking University Hospital in Beijing first removed a tumour located in the second vertebra of the boy's neck.

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Last month, surgeons in China successfully implanted an artificial 3D-printed vertebra (pictured) into a 12-year-old bone cancer patient to help him walk again

They then replaced it with the 3D-printed implant between the first and third vertebrae to allow him to lift his head.

The five-hour surgery was a world first and will enable the boy named Minghao to walk again after spending two months confined to a hospital bed.

While 3D-printed organs are not yet commonly used, there have been previous cases of patients being implanted with 3D-printed jaws, hips and even a pelvis.

'This is the first use of a 3D-printed vertebra as an implant for orthopaedic spine surgery in the world,' Dr Liu Zhongjun, who performed the surgery, told Chinese media CCTV.

Using existing technology, the patient's head needs to be framed with pins after surgery. The patient's head cannot touch the bed when he is resting. This lasts for at least three months,' Dr Liu said.

'But with 3D printing technology, we can simulate the shape of the vertebra, which is much stronger and more convenient than traditional methods,' said Dr Liu Zhongjun, who performed the surgery

And last year, British surgeons used 3D printing technology to recreate the severely injured face of a road accident victim.

The unaffected side of the biker’s face was used to create a mirror image, to enable perfect facial reconstruction.

The images are were both to design guides to cut and position facial bones with pinpoint accuracy and create tailor-made implants for the patient.