Cost-Effective 3D Printing of Custom Vascular Models in Vascular and Interventional Radiology

Figures & data

Table 1. Overview of several common 3D printing methods.

Printer technology	SLS	SLA	FDM	Material jetting/PolyJet
Description	Laser sinters a bed of powdered material, binding the powder together to create a solid layer	UV laser focused on liquid photopolymer causes molecules to polymerize, forming a solid layer	Continuous filament of material is fed through a heated printer extruder head and deposited on the growing model	Multiple printer jets spray out tiny volumes of liquid photopolymer, instantly UV-cured into a solid object
Printable materials	Polymers (polystyrene), metals (steel, titanium, alloys)	Resin photopolymers	ABS, other polymers available	Multiple, often simultaneously
Printer examples (vendor)	P 396 (EOS) Vanguard (3D Systems)	Form2 (Formlabs) Ember (Autodesk) ProX 950 (3D Systems)	uPrint (Stratasys) M2 (Makergear) 2+ (Ultimaker)	Objet1000 (Stratasys) J750 (Stratasys) JetFusion3D (HP)
Minimum layer thickness	0.05–0.08 mm	0.01–0.05 mm	0.05–0.1 mm	0.01–0.1 mm

ABS: Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene; FDM: Fused deposition modeling; SLA: Stereolithography; SLS: Selective laser sintering; UV: Ultraviolet.

Table 2. An affordable desktop printer Form 2 (Formlabs) was used for our project. More expensive printers with larger build volumes, better resolution and/or greater material flexibility might be found in a large hospital 3D lab.

Printer (vendor)	Form 2 (Formlabs)	ProX 950 (3D Systems)	J750 (Stratasys)
Purchase price^†	$3499	$200,000	>$200,000
Printer type	SLA	SLA	PolyJet
Materials	Resin photopolymer	Resin photopolymer	Multiple materials
Build volume (cm^3)	14.5 × 14.5 × 17.5	150 × 55 × 75	49 × 39 × 20
Layer height (μm)	25	50	14

^†Prices listed are rough estimates; a direct quote from the manufacturer is recommended for precise pricing.

SLA: Stereolithography.

Figure 1. CT data segmentation using Mimics InPrint 2.0.

Color-coded segments (bottom right) were virtually cut to fit our printer's build volume.

Figure 2. Form 2 (Formlabs), a stereolithography printer was used.

STL files manipulated using Form 2's CAD software for placement within the printer 3D build volume. Two separate prints of 8–12 h each were required to print all model parts.

CAD: Computer-aided design; STL: Standard Tessellation Language.

Figure 3. Summary of cost and time requirements.

Figure 4. Printed material was separated from the printer base and support scaffolding peeled off.

Parts were washed in isopropyl alcohol solution to remove uncured resin from the model surface. The components were fused by painting liquid resin onto the joints, and curing with a handheld UV laser (A). The model was filled with water and vascular access sheaths were secured (B).

Figure 5. Completed arterial prototype.

Figure 6. 3D printed model used for endovascular simulation.

A resident practicing catheter skills (A), with corresponding fluoroscopic image of the training model (B).