Patient-Specific Cardiovascular Models for Educational and Training Purposes

Introduction: Structural heart defects affect 8 out of 1000 newborns. Multiple techniques are applied in the manufacturing of heart models used for educational purposes. Nevertheless, these models do not generally take into account the array of configurations that congenital cases present.

3D printing offers a flexible and powerful alternative to create accurate patient-specific models for educational purposes and pre-surgical planning.

Methods: CT and MRI scans of a number of cardiovascular pathologies were obtained. The anatomies were then 3D reconstructed and modified so that they could be successfully 3D printed. Multiple 3D printing techniques and materials were then utilized to produce physical anatomical representations of the cardiac anatomy, according to the specific needs of each case.

Results: Rigid models of the lumen were obtained for educational and communication purposes, where each cardiac structure was represented in a different color for better understanding of the patients’ pathologies.

Flexible translucent hollow models of the congenital heart defects were 3D printed for the simulation of the procedure to be performed, with the aim of offering a better insight of the surgical outcome.

Conclusions: 3D printed patient-specific models of the cardiovascular anatomy from medical image data hold the promise to improve the clinical understanding of congenital heart defects, offering physicians superior training and planning possibilities.