Rapid Prototyping as an elegant Production Tool for Polymeric Tissue Engineering Scaffolds: a review

In the current review, we aim to give an overview of different rapid prototyping (RP) methods which have been applied so far for the production of polymeric scaffolds for tissue engineering applications. After a general introduction on tissue engineering, scaffolds and biomaterials, both the well established RP techniques and the novel more recent developments in the field will be discussed. Comparison between RP and the classical techniques for producing scaffolds, each with their specific advantages and drawbacks will enable the reader to gain insight in the power of RP as an elegant scaffold production technique. Finally, an overview of some commonly used techniques for characterising the materials developed will be given