Meshless algorithm for soft tissue cutting in surgical simulation

Abstract

Computation of soft tissue mechanical responses for surgery simulation and image-guided surgery has been dominated by the finite element (FE) method that utilises a mesh of interconnected elements as a computational grid. Shortcomings of such mesh-based discretisation in modelling of surgical cutting include high computational cost and the need for re-meshing in the vicinity of cutting-induced discontinuity. The meshless total Lagrangian adaptive dynamic relaxation (MTLADR) algorithm we present here does not exhibit such shortcomings, as it relies on spatial discretisation in a form of a cloud of nodes. The cutting-induced discontinuity is modelled solely through changes in nodal domains of influence, which is done through efficient implementation of the visibility criterion using the level set method. Accuracy of our MTLADR algorithm with visibility criterion is confirmed against the established nonlinear solution procedures available in the commercial FE code Abaqus.

Keywords::

• surgery simulation
• soft tissue cutting
• level set
• meshless method
• dynamic relaxation

Acknowledgements

The first author was supported by William and Marlene Schrader Postgraduate Scholarship during the completion of this research. The financial support of the Australian Research Council (Discovery Grants Nos DP1092893 and DP120100402) and the National Health and Medical Research Council (Grant No. APP1006031) is gratefully acknowledged.