Methodology of Low Cost Rapid Manufacturing of Anatomical Models with Material Imitation of Soft Tissues

Abstract

The pre-operative preparation of a surgeon is increasingly often extended to individual patient’s anatomical models depicting the affected organ and the existing lesion in relation to the surrounding structures (e.g. blood vessels). Among the models, there are models of the skeletal system, in which the FFF technology is used. The models of parenchymal organs are more difficult to reproduce due to the material limitations in the FFF technology, which is why alternative technologies such as PolyJet and SLA are used. Due to the high price of models, they are employed less frequently, especially in the Polish hospitals. The research presented in the article deals with the modification of the existing methodology of rapid pre-operative models production with the use of various low-budget rapid manufacturing techniques, which use materials of low hardness, similar to the human soft tissues. The aim was to create a methodology and determine the parameters of materials that allow for the cheap production of functional pre-operational aids.