The university was using 2D CT (computed tomography) data to visualise the anatomical
and vascular structure of the liver during the preoperative planning for complex liver transplantations. However, this presented shortcomings in that the data can only be viewed on a computer screen, limiting the practicality of pre-surgery planning. To improve patient safety and the success rate for liver transplants, the hospital sought a way to produce clinically relevant liver models that precisely replicate the patient’s liver. This would allow for pre-surgery planning that helps surgeons see and understand the exact anatomy in model form.
As heart surgeries become increasingly intricate and complicated, planning patient-specific care for challenging cases has become more difficult using traditional methods. “When you are dealing with a complex situation where different organ systems are abnormal, each one needing its own specialist team with real-time decision making at the time of surgery, it becomes very difficult to coordinate, plan and make decisions,” said Rajesh Krishnamurthy, M.D., section chief of radiology research at Texas Children’s Hospital.
Dokuz Eylül University Hospital predicts that the improved surgical outcomes achievable by pre-surgical planning using 3D printed models will lead to an increase in the number of willing donors. As an example, the surgical team* recently used the CT data of a living donor candidate to obtain a 3D printed liver medical model with transparent tissue. Not only could the team use the model to evaluate liver vascular structures (hepatic artery, portal vein, hepatic vein) to ensure that the donor was viable, but they were also able to present the donor with the visual representation to explain the procedure and achieve informed consent from the patient.
