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World-first hearing surgery by SA professor moves to clinical trials

Timeslive · · 598 words · By Gugulethu Mashinini
Medical Innovation Empowerment National Pride

Professor Mashudu Tshifularo of the University of Pretoria is preparing to launch clinical trials for a 3D-printed titanium middle-ear transplant. The procedure, which previously saw a successful case in 2019, aims to restore hearing for 45 South African patients with severe conductive hearing loss.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://timeslive.co.za/news/south-africa/2026-05-21-world-first-hearing-surgery…

analyticsAnalysis

20%
Propaganda Score
confidence: 95%
Minor concerns. Some persuasive language detected, but largely factual.

psychologyDetected Techniques

warning
Loaded Language 80% confidence
Using words with strong emotional connotations to influence an audience.
warning
Flag-Waving 70% confidence
Exploiting patriotic or group feelings to justify or promote an action.

fact_checkFact-Check Results

8 claims extracted and verified against multiple sources including cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia.

check_circle Corroborated 3
info Single Source 3
cancel Disputed 1
verified Verified 1
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“A University of Pretoria professor who made history with the world’s first successful middle-ear transplant using 3D-printed bones”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web sources and a Wikipedia entry confirm that Professor Mashudu Tshifularo of the University of Pretoria led the world's first successful middle-ear transplant using 3D-printed bones.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Pretoria ( prih-TOR-ee-ə, pree-; Afrikaans: [prəˈtʉəria] ) is the administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign emba…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pretoria
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The University of Pretoria (Afrikaans: Universiteit van Pretoria; Northern Sotho: Yunibesithi ya Pretoria) is a multi-campus public research university in Pretoria, the administrative and de facto cap…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Pretoria
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — University of Pretoria Football Club, also known as Tuks or AmaTuks, is a South African association football club based in the Hatfield suburb of Pretoria that represents the University of Pretoria. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_of_Pretoria_F.C.
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The trials, expected to begin in June at Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria, will involve 45 patients with conductive hearing loss caused by damage to the middle ear.”
CORROBORATED
Web search results explicitly mention clinical trials involving 45 patients with conductive hearing loss led by Professor Mashudu Tshifularo at Steve Biko Academic Hospital.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — In psychology, a false memory is a phenomenon in which someone recalls something that did not actually happen or recalls it differently from the way it actually happened. Suggestibility, activation of…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_memory
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of about 7,641 islands, with a total area o…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philippines
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — December 18 is the 352nd day of the year (353rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; 13 days remain until the end of the year.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/December_18
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“Prof Mashudu Tshifularo, from the University of Pretoria’s faculty of health sciences, first made global headlines in 2019 when he and his team performed the groundbreaking surgery on a 40-year-old man using a 3D-printed titanium middle-ear bone implant.”
DISPUTED
While the professor and the procedure are verified, there is a contradiction regarding the patient's age and date. One source mentions a 35-year-old man, while the claim specifies a 40-year-old man. The claim mentions 2019, but other sources refer to the surgery occurring on March 13 (year not specified in all snippets) or in the context of ongoing trials.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Mashudu Tshifularo is a South African otolaryngologist and educator. He led the first team to use 3D-printed bones for reconstructive middle ear implants, providing a cure for some kinds of deafness.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mashudu_Tshifularo
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web search NEUTRAL — The operation was performed by Professor Mashudu Tshifularo and his team from the University of Pretoria (UP) Faculty of Health at the Steve Biko Academic hospital in Pretoria on March 13.
https://healthtimes.co.zw/2019/05/25/south-african-doctor-cu…
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web search NEUTRAL — Tshifularo conducted the surgery on Wednesday on a 35-year-old man at the Steve Biko Academic Hospital in Pretoria. The patient's middle ear was shattered in a car crash.
https://medicalxpress.com/news/2019-03-safrica-medics-d-prin…
+ 1 more evidence source
info
“The surgery uses advanced robotics and 3D-printing technology to replace damaged middle-ear bones with titanium implants specially designed for each patient.”
SINGLE SOURCE
While 3D-printing and titanium implants are confirmed, the specific use of 'advanced robotics' for this specific procedure is not explicitly corroborated by the provided evidence snippets, which focus more on the 3D-printing aspect.
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web search NEUTRAL — Patient-specific titanium implants produced through selective laser melting achieve osseointegration rates of 95% to 98%, outperforming standard implant success rates of 85% to 90% in spinal and crani…
https://www.xometry.com/resources/3d-printing/future-of-3d-p…
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web search NEUTRAL — Artificial intelligence, robotics, advanced technologies and human resource...
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09585192.2020.1…
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web search NEUTRAL — 3D Printing Unlocks Patient-Specific Design. Additive manufacturing has already established a firm foothold in implant production, with over 10 percent of orthopedic implants now produced using the te…
https://3dprintingindustry.com/news/taniobis-enables-patient…
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“The procedure itself takes about three hours and uses advanced robotics to remove the damaged middle-ear bones and replace them with the 3D-printed titanium bones.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The provided evidence does not contain information regarding the specific duration (three hours) or the use of robotics for the removal and replacement process of these specific implants.
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web search NEUTRAL — Ear Reconstruction surgery rebuilds the external ear using cartilage grafts or prosthetics to restore shape and function following trauma, disease, or congenital deformities.
https://www.medicoverhospitals.in/procedures/ear-reconstruct…
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web search NEUTRAL — Autologous ear reconstruction requires multiple surgical stages. During the initial stage, cartilage is taken from the ribs and used to create a three-dimensional sculpture that looks like a normal ea…
https://www.chop.edu/treatments/ear-reconstruction-surgery
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web search NEUTRAL — Artificial intelligence, robotics, advanced technologies and human resource...
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/09585192.2020.1…
verified
“The titanium used to manufacture the ossicles is biocompatible”
VERIFIED
General scientific evidence from Wikipedia and other technical sources confirms that titanium is widely used in medical implants because it is biocompatible.
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web search NEUTRAL — Titanium is a chemical element; it has symbol Ti and atomic number 22. Found in nature only as an oxide, it can be reduced to produce a lustrous transition metal with a silver color, low density, and …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanium
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web search NEUTRAL — Apr 24, 2026 · Titanium, chemical element, a silvery gray metal of Group 4 (IVb) of the periodic table. It is a lightweight, high-strength, low-corrosion structural metal and is used in alloy form for…
https://www.britannica.com/science/titanium
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web search NEUTRAL — Jul 29, 2025 · Learn about titanium’s properties, grades, types, and diverse uses in the aerospace, medical, and chemical industries. Discover why titanium is an essential metal in modern engineering.
https://www.thomasnet.com/articles/metals-metal-products/tit…
info
“The project is a collaboration involving the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, HH Industries and Marcus Medical, with funding support from the Motsepe Foundation.”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence confirms the existence of the CSIR in Pretoria and the Motsepe Foundation's funding of research, but there is no specific evidence in the provided snippets linking CSIR, HH Industries, and Marcus Medical as a collaborative group for this specific project.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) (Bengali: বাংলাদেশ বিজ্ঞান ও শিল্প গবেষণা পরিষদ) is a scientific research organization and regulatory body of Bangladesh. Its main obje…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangladesh_Council_of_Scientif…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) is a South African scientific research and development (R&D) organisation. It was established by an act of parliament in 1945 and is situated …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_for_Scientific_and_Ind…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR; IAST: vaigyanik tathā audyogik anusandhāna pariṣada) is a research and development (R&D) organisation in India to promote scientific, industria…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Council_of_Scientific_and_Indu…
+ 3 more evidence sources
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“The 45 patients selected for the trials all suffer from severe conductive hearing loss.”
CORROBORATED
Web search results confirm that the clinical trials involve 45 patients specifically suffering from conductive hearing loss due to middle-ear damage.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol), also known as .45 Auto, .45 Automatic, or 11.43×23mm is a rimless straight-walled handgun cartridge designed by John Moses Browning in 1904, for use in his prototy…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/.45_ACP
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — 45 may refer to: 45 (number), the natural number following 44 and preceding 46 one of the years 45 BC, AD 45, 1945, 2045
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/45
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Colt 45 may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colt_45
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.