Abstract
PurposeThe goal of this study was to develop a complete workflow allowing for conducting computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation of airflow through the upper airways based on computed tomography (CT) and cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) studies of individual adult patients.MethodsThis study is based on CT images of 16 patients. Image processing and model generation of the human nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses were performed using open-source and freeware software. 3-D Slicer was used primarily for segmentation and new surface model generation. Further processing was done using Autodesk® Meshmixer TM. The governing equations are discretized by means of the finite volume method. Subsequently, the corresponding algebraic equation systems were solved by OpenFOAM software.ResultsWe described the protocol for the preparation of a 3-D model of the nasal cavity and paranasal sinuses and highlighted several problems that the future researcher may encounter. The CFD results were presented based on examples of 3-D models of the patient 1 (norm) and patient 2 (pathological changes).ConclusionThe short training time for new user without a prior experience in image segmentation and 3-D mesh editing is an important advantage of this type of research. Both CBCT and CT are useful for model building. However, CBCT may have limitations. The Q criterion in CFD illustrates the considerable complication of the nasal flow and allows for direct evaluation and quantitative comparison of various flows and can be used for the assessment of nasal airflow.
Highlights
Breathing is an indispensable condition for human life
Seeking better understanding of the anatomical–functional relations, we focused on Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) studies which involve numerical methods to solve fluid flow issues [15,16,17,18,19,20]
The goal of this study was to develop a complete protocol for conducting computational fluid dynamics simulation of airflow through the upper airways of adults based on their computed tomography (CT) images
Summary
Breathing is an indispensable condition for human life. Airway patency, and condition determine our quality of human life and predisposition to respiratory diseases. It is difficult to determine what is clinically the normal anatomy of the nasal cavity? It is common clinical practice to observe normal nasal cavity in visual examination and yet the patient reports an abnormality with nasal breathing. In addition to anterior and posterior rhinoscopy, the nasal cavity can be assessed using airway endoscopy, computed. European Archives of Oto-Rhino-Laryngology (2021) 278:1443–1453 tomography (CT), MRI, rhinomanometry, olfactometry as well as questionnaires dedicated to the assessment of the nasal breathing quality and current ailments (a visual analog scale (VAS), WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire, SNOT-16 and its revisions with 20, 22 or 25 questions, ENS6Q, etc.) [5,6,7]. The air-tissue interface is well-defined in this modality owing to the high value of CT in otorhinolaryngology [10, 11]
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