by Marek Ples
Fig.1 - Artificial blood vessel developed by Marek Ples
Fig.2 - Flow through bifurcated articicial blood vessel (blood-like medium with marker particles)
Performing medical procedures requires precise motor skills from physicians. Proper training is crucial for a doctor to master specific techniques. However, a significant challenge arises due to the lack of suitable training materials, especially for procedures like intravenous punctures, which typically require human or animal subjects. To address this issue and enhance medical training, specialized training devices are being developed.
The traditional training devices, known as phantoms, found in the market are essentially solid blocks of plastic masses with channels imitating blood vessels. Unfortunately, this setup falls short in accurately replicating real surgical scenarios. Real tissues are intricate systems, and replicating their mechanical properties artificially is a complex task. This led to the development of a novel surgical trainer focused on blood vessel punctures.
To best mimic tissue behavior during punctures, a two-component training device design was chosen. The artificial blood vessels were created separately and then integrated into a elastic body. 3D FDM printing technology using ABS plastic was employed to create the molds.
Fig.3 - Prototype of the phantom; A - general view, B - with the outlined artificial vessel.
Following the creation of the phantom, the force profile during puncture was analyzed and compared with the commonly available market phantoms.
For more information, please visit www.weirdscience.eu. You can also contact me by email (moze.dzis@gmail.com).