Abstract
Purpose: To develop and validate a controlled patient-derived process for producing an in vitro, nonrigid model of aortic arch aneurysm. Materials and Methods: A three-dimensional magnetic resonance (MR) angiogram derived from a patient with an aortic arch aneurysm was segmented by using a homemade software package, meshed and converted to Standard Tessellation Language (STL) file format. The authors transferred this format to a stereolithography machine to produce a replica of the entire aorta, including the arch aneurysm and supraaortic arteries, by pouring silicone rubber. Results: A sturdy, life-size, soft, transparent plastic cast, accurately reproducing both the internal and external anatomy of the aortic aneurysm, was produced in less than 1 week. Comparison between the STL file format of MR angiographic images of both the patient's aorta and model enabled validation of the reliability of the manufacturing process. Conclusions: The combination of easy segmentation and conversion to the STL file format with stereolithography techniques enabled a realistic, life-size, silicone vascular phantom to be created from a live patient imaging dataset.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 919-924 |
Number of pages | 6 |
Journal | Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology |
Volume | 19 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 2008 |
Externally published | Yes |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging
- Radiological and Ultrasound Technology