| dc.description | Introduction
With the popularization of 3D printing, many areas of knowledge are using this technology to
create products and diminish costs, even in health segment. Commercial phantoms are expensive
and hard to obtain in development countries. As alternative, 3D printed phantoms can be the
way to produce inexpensive and reliable simulators aimed for dosimetry and teaching. That
said, the objective of this study is to determine which of the available commercial fi laments
can be used in 3D printing to mimic human tissue for use in 3D printed phantoms.
Methods
Fourteen 3D printing fi laments (ABS, ABS premium, PLA, PLA+Bone, PLA+aluminum, PLA+brass,
PLA+cooper, SILK, HIPS, PETG, PVA, Wood, TPU and TPE) commercially available in Brazil
had their attenuation tested, using computed tomography. Each material was printed as 2
centimeters edge cube with rectilinear pattern and 60, 80 and 100 percent infi ll. The cubes
were scanned in a Philips CT Brilliance 6 with 120 kV, 200 mA, 2mm slices and standard
reconstruction. At the center of each cube, an ~ 120 mm?? region of interest were set to measure
the mean Hounsfi eld Unit (HU) and the standard deviation value. For each material a graphic
was plotted and the curve equation determined.
Results
The HU of the tested materials ranged from -516,2 ?? 7,3 to 329,8 ?? 18,9. All human tissues
could be mimetized with these materials, except bone (mainly cortical bone). Considering
the curve equation, the most promising fi lament was PLA+Cooper, due to the multiple infi ll
confi guration that allows the resulting HU range to represent from adipose and skin tissue to
marrow bone. With a two extruder printer may be possible add lung tissue to the model and
make a 3D phantom more complex and accurate.
Conclusions
With these tested materials, is possible to construct various phantoms, simulating a wide range
of tissues. However, any simulator with cortical bone is impaired because none fi lament achieve
the required HU value (at least over 800 HU). | |
