A simple and convenient 3D printed temporal bone model for drilling simulating surgery

Abstract

Background

It is still far away from most of us in that it requires complex 3D modeling.

Aims/objectives

To investigate a more precision, simple, convenient and economical three-dimensional (3D) printed temporal bone model printed by a commercial desktop 3D printer, which can be widely promoted and applied in the training of beginners in otology.

Material and Methods

The CT data of the temporal bone were imported into Mimics to construct a 3D digital model of the temporal bone. After loaded into a high-precision 3D printer, a high-precision temporal bone model was printed at a scale of 1:1. Then, the model was evaluated by 5 senior attending physicians, including its morphological accuracy, simulation about surgery, advantages and educational value, using the 7-point Likert scale.

Results

A life-like temporal bone model was successfully printed out. Five senior attending physicians all thought that the printed model was similar to the natural temporal bone in physical properties and the haptic sensation of bone drilling, and was accurate, simple, convenient and effective. In addition, the model was considered to be of high application value in the teaching of temporal bone anatomy and surgery simulation, which had a material cost of only 3 dollars.

Conclusions

The high-precision 3D printed temporal bone model is highly similar to the natural temporal bone, and can be conveniently and effectively used in the training of simulating temporal bone surgery for beginners in otology. Its production is simple and economical, so it can be popularized on a large scale.

Chinese Abstract

背景：颞骨手术对我们大多数人仍然是遥不可及的, 因为它需要复杂的 3D 建模。

目的：研究由商用桌面 3D 打印机打印出来的更精确、简单、方便和经济的三维 (3D) 打印颞骨模型。该模型可广泛推广和应用于耳科初学者的培训。

材料和方法：将颞骨的 CT 数据输入 Mimics, 来构建颞骨的 3D 数字模型。载入高精度3D打印机后, 高精度颞骨模型以 1:1 的比例打印出来。然后由5名高级主治医师采用李克特7点量表, 对模型进行形态学准确性、手术模拟、优势及教育价值等方面的评价。

结果：成功打印出栩栩如生的颞骨模型。五名高级主治医师都认为打印出来的模型在物理性质上和骨钻孔的触觉上类似于天然颞骨, 且准确、简单、方便、有效。此外, 该模型被认为在颞骨解剖教学和手术模拟方面具有较高的应用价值。材料成本仅为 3 美元。

结论：高精度3D打印颞骨模型与天然颞骨高度相似, 可方便有效地用于耳科初学者模拟颞骨手术的训练, 其生产简单、经济, 可大规模推广。

Keywords:

• Temporal bone
• surgery
• training
• education
• 3D printing

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the grants from [Startup Fund for scientific research, Fujian Medical University#1] under Grant [number 2017XQ1171]; [Quanzhou Municipal Science & Technology Project#2] under Grant [number 2020C036R]; [Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province#3] under Grant [number 2019J01595]; [the Youth Scientific Research Project of Fujian Provincial Health and Family Planning Commission#4].