Chapter 11 - 3D-printed anatomical phantoms

Abstract

Despite the potential already expressed by 3D printing (3DP) for advanced anatomical modeling in biomedical applications, it is still little used for the creation of anthropomorphic phantoms of human organs, sometimes also consisting of complex internal structures. Making an anthropomorphic phantom is much more elaborate than making a simple anatomical model, also given the differences in the type of applications. 3D-printed anatomical phantoms are used both for quantitative technical evaluations on morpho-functional imaging devices, providing simulation accuracy not achievable with currently available commercial phantoms, and to mimic tissues and organs for the training of resident doctors, or even to communicate know-how on new surgical procedures. 3DP allows diversification of the applications and provides objects with customized shapes according to the requests of the medical departments, hence the need to develop ad hoc techniques for the realization of anatomical phantoms with unique characteristics and greater ease of use.