A rescue unlike any other took place at the University Veterinary Clinic at the beginning of this year. An injured buzzard arrived at the clinic with a fractured upper beak, and veterinarians worked on an innovative method to repair the beak using a 3D printer. This is a promising advance in the rehabilitation of wild birds and potentially other animals.
When it arrived at the clinic, the buzzard was in good general health, but its beak was fractured. An initial medical assessment of the buzzard's beak was carried out using X-rays and a scan of the skull before assessing whether the rhinotheca matrix (which is responsible for keratin production) had been damaged to give an idea of the prognosis for beak regrowth.
Although the tests indicated that the beak could potentially regrow in the long term, an interim solution had to be found to enable the bird to feed properly once released. The challenge? To find a method that was both durable and non-permanent, minimally invasive for the animal, and inexpensive for rehabilitation centers.
There is currently little scientific literature on beak reconstruction in raptors. Most of the methods described are permanent and involve the use of metal rings, which, given the size of the patient in question, was not feasible and would have prevented the beak from regrowing in the long term.
Léna Bouvet, Assistant Veterinarian in Zoological Medicine.
Several tests were carried out on raptor carcasses donated to science in order to develop an atraumatic and resistant method consisting of a silicone mold of the base of the beak made directly on the buzzard. Based on this mold and the scan, the team of veterinarians at the Skill Lab stepped in. This department is responsible for developing educational anatomical models, and the veterinarians contributed their expertise on the use of 3D printers and the characteristics of the various materials under consideration.
The veterinarians at the Skill Lab printed a complete beak in 3D, sized to fit. The printed beak was used to create a mold, which was filled with epoxy dental resin and then dried with ultraviolet light.
Once the bird was under general anesthesia, the epoxy resin tip was glued directly onto the fractured part using a strong adhesive. The connection between the beak and the prosthesis was also reinforced with epoxy resin and the whole thing was dried with ultraviolet light. The entire assembly was adjusted using a Dremel (a sanding tool that smooths imperfections and reshapes) to ensure that the anatomical proportions were correct and that the patient could feed without discomfort.
The entire procedure took a team of five veterinarians 40 minutes to complete. The buzzard woke up without any problems and the first feeding tests were carried out that same evening. She was kept in an aviary for 15 days at the CREAVES re e in Namur to check the strength of the assembly and her ability to feed with the prosthesis.
The prosthesis will eventually fall off naturally within a few months, as the rhinotheque matrix produces keratin from the base to the tip. The beak of the buzzard will grow back but will not be as perfectly shaped as its original beak. Fortunately, this should not affect the buzzard's ability to feed, even if the prosthesis falls off earlier. Buzzards are very intelligent birds that can also feed on worms or scavenge during periods of food shortage.
The CVU veterinary team hopes to publish this protocol in order to contribute to the development of new methods for rescuing smaller wild birds, which are often victims of collisions with vehicles and whose long rehabilitation is too costly for some centers. The 3D printing process is already used to help amputated dogs, but also to reconstruct a turtle's shell but there are still a lot of challenges to face in this area.
The buzzard was ringed for tracking purposes and then released in the Namur region. There is still too little scientific data on the post-operative follow-up of this type of procedure, but the simplicity of this protocol could make it accessible to a large number of veterinarians and rehabilitation centers.
Vous avez envie de vous lancer dans des études qui correspondent à vos centres d’intérêt et à vos capacités tout en vous ouvrant ensuite des horizons professionnels correspondant à vos attentes?
Quelques conseils pour mener à bien votre réflexion.
The members of the rector's team, led by Rector Anne-Sophie Nyssen, took office this week. Professor Sylvie Gobert joins the team, which now consists of four vice-rectors and five advisors.
On Tuesday, September 22, ULiège celebrated the start of the academic year. Rector Anne-Sophie Nyssen presided over the ceremony, whose theme was “Clarity, Courage, Creativity.” Photos and videos from the ceremony.
