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SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – Of the many challenges we face during this pandemic, a shortage of tests has been at the forefront.

Doctors at LSU Health Shreveport hope to help relieve that burden through 3D printing.

“There’s a dental surgical resin that’s placed into the 3D printer and it uses a laser beam to cross-link the material into various different shapes. It’s capable of producing a limitless number of shapes,” says Dr. Steve Alexander/Professor of Molecular and Cellular Physiology.

The 3D printer can produce 324 nasal swabs at one time.

“To produce these nasal swabs takes the better part of a day for one printer. By expanding the number of printers we have, and the amount of printing we can do, we are going to meet the needs for local testing facilities,” says Dr. Alexander.

LSU Health Shreveport is not a testing site. Search here to find available testing sites in Louisiana.