Rapid Prototyping Raw Models on the Basis of High Resolution Computed Tomography Lung Data for Respiratory Flow Dynamics

Rationale and Objectives

Three-dimensional image reconstruction by volume rendering and rapid prototyping has made it possible to visualize anatomic structures in three dimensions for interventional planning and academic research.

Methods

Volumetric chest computed tomography was performed on a healthy volunteer. Computed tomographic images of the larger bronchial branches were segmented by an extended three-dimensional region-growing algorithm, converted into a stereolithography file, and used for computer-aided design on a laser sintering machine. The injection of gases for respiratory flow modeling and measurements using magnetic resonance imaging were done on a hollow cast.

Results

Manufacturing the rapid prototype took about 40 minutes and included the airway tree from trackea to segmental bronchi (fifth generation). The branching of the airways are clearly visible in the 3 He images, and the radial imaging has the potential to elucidate the airway dimensions.

Conclusion

The results for flow patterns in the human bronchial tree using the rapid-prototype model with hyperpolarized helium-3 magnetic resonance imaging show the value of this model for flow phantom studies.

Radiologic imaging provides a noninvasive modality to visualize human organ structures. With the revolutionary technological developments of the past decade, radiology has grown beyond the visualization of two-dimensional structures. Multislice helical computed tomography can handle up to 320 slices within <1 second, recording volumetric data at submillimeter spatial resolution, which has improved quality in diagnostic radiology. Three-dimensional image reconstruction by volume rendering has made it possible to visualize anatomic structures in three dimensions for interventional preoperative planning and procedures. The recently introduced method of rapid prototyping is one modality with a promising future in academic and industrial research.

Rapid prototyping can be used to produce models of living organs from high-resolution in vivo images representing the actual structure in three dimensions. Humans are considered to be the most evolved and complicated organisms, yet we are still uncertain about many human physiologic processes, because in vitro models are used to mimic in vivo processes.

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Materials and methods

Patient and Imaging

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