The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens are implementing a groundbreaking medical procedure to help an injured gorilla.
Gladys, an 11-year-old gorilla, broke her arm in a scuffle with her siblings last month, according to a news release.
The gorilla is housed in the world’s first 3D-printed titanium casting, designed by GE Aerospace’s Colibrium Additive in Montreal, Canada.
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On May 16, a month after the incident, zoo veterinarians examined the animal’s injuries and confirmed that the cast was working.
Ashley Ashcraft, head of the Cincinnati Zoo’s primate team, reported in a statement that Gladys tolerated the 3D-printed cast better than the one placed on her arm during surgery. The temporary plaster was “much better”.
“Even though she weighed about 8 pounds, she was walking better than we expected,” she said in the release.
On April 14, Gladys underwent surgery to repair her arm.
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The zoo confirmed in a previous press release that these altercations between gorillas are not unusual.
Victoria McGee, a primate keeper at the Cincinnati Zoo, called Gladys’ incident a “little fight.”
She said: “She must have fallen in the wrong way to fracture her arm, but the result was a full tilt fracture of her distal humerus.”
The team hopes the titanium cast will be “more gorilla-resistant” because it is made from the same material as the screws and plates placed in Gladys’ arm during surgery.
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The release states that Gladys received 24/7 care during the first few weeks of her injury while she was separated from the other gorillas.
Gladys will likely stay away from her pack and the public in the weeks following the cast’s teardown to “take her time”
Dr. Mike Wenninger, the Cincinnati Zoo’s director of animal health, confirmed that keepers “did a great job” keeping Gladys “distracted and happy” so she could recover.
“Yesterday’s X-ray showed that the wound is healing,” he said. “We will keep her in a cast for a few more weeks. After that, she will need physical therapy but should be able to use her arm as before.”
Gladys will likely be away from her group and the public in the weeks following the character’s removal in order to “take her time” before being reintroduced, the press release said.
Cincinnati Zoo veterinarian Dr. Jessica Heinz said she and her team will continue to work with Gladys on stretching and mobility exercises to ensure she can perform similar movements on her own once she is “out of the cast for good.”
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Fox News Digital reached out to the Cincinnati Zoo for additional comment.
Fox News Digital also contacted Colibrium Additive for more information. According to 3DNatives, the company’s senior principal engineer Shannon Morman said, “The titanium casting took approximately 65 hours to print, and we were able to deliver it to the zoo team within a week.”
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