Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Comparative Study
. 2023 Aug;50(8):4734-4743.
doi: 10.1002/mp.16587. Epub 2023 Jul 6.

Reproduction of a conventional anthropomorphic female chest phantom by 3D-printing: Comparison of image contrasts and absorbed doses in CT

Patrizia Kunert  1 , Helmut Schlattl  1 , Sebastian Trinkl  1 , Augusto Giussani  1 , Lea Klein  2 , Martin Janich  2 , Detlef Reichert  3 , Gunnar Brix  1
Affiliations
Comparative Study

Reproduction of a conventional anthropomorphic female chest phantom by 3D-printing: Comparison of image contrasts and absorbed doses in CT

Patrizia Kunert et al. Med Phys. 2023 Aug.

Abstract

Background: The production of individualized anthropomorphic phantoms via three-dimensional (3D) printing methods offers promising possibilities to assess and optimize radiation exposures for specifically relevant patient groups (i.e., overweighed or pregnant persons) that are not adequately represented by standardized anthropomorphic phantoms. However, the equivalence of printed phantoms must be demonstrated exemplarily with respect to the resulting image contrasts and dose distributions.

Purpose: To reproduce a conventionally produced anthropomorphic phantom of a female chest and breasts and to evaluate their equivalence with respect to image contrasts and absorbed doses at the example of a computed tomography (CT) examination of the chest.

Methods: In a first step, the effect of different print settings on the CT values of printed samples was systematically investigated. Subsequently, a transversal slice and breast add-ons of a conventionally produced female body phantom were reproduced using a multi-material extrusion-based printer, considering six different types of tissues (muscle, lung, adipose, and glandular breast tissue, as well as bone and cartilage). CT images of the printed and conventionally produced phantom parts were evaluated with respect to their geometric correspondence, image contrasts, and absorbed doses measured using thermoluminescent dosimeters.

Results: CT values of printed objects are highly sensitive to the selected print settings. The soft tissues of the conventionally produced phantom could be reproduced with a good agreement. Minor differences in CT values were observed for bone and lung tissue, whereas absorbed doses to the relevant tissues were identical within the measurement uncertainties.

Conclusion: 3D-printed phantoms are with exception of minor contrast differences equivalent to their conventionally manufactured counterparts. When comparing the two production techniques, it is important to note that conventionally manufactured phantoms should not be considered as absolute benchmarks, as they also only approximate the human body in terms of its absorption, and attenuation of x-rays as well as its geometry.

Keywords: 3D-printing; X-ray imaging; anthropomorphic phantom; quality assurance.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Mille MM, Griffin KT, Maass-Moreno R, Lee C. Fabrication of a pediatric torso phantom with multiple tissues represented using a dual nozzle thermoplastic 3D printer. J App Clin Med Phys. 2020;21(11):226-236. doi:10.1002/acm2.13064
    1. Tino RB, Yeo AU, Brandt M, Leary M, Kron T. A customizable anthropomorphic phantom for dosimetric verification of 3D-printed lung, tissue, and bone density materials. Med Phys. 2021;49(1):52-69. doi:10.1002/mp.15364
    1. Ehler ED, Barney BM, Higgins PD, Dusenbery KE. Patient specific 3D printed phantom for IMRT quality assurance. Phys Med Biol. 2014;59:5763. doi:10.1088/0031-9155/59/19/5763
    1. Craft DF, Howell RM. Preparation and fabrication of a full-scale, sagittal-sliced, 3D-printed, patient-specific radiotherapy phantom. J App Clin Med Phys. 2017;18(5):285-292. doi:10.1002/acm2.12162
    1. Hatamikia S, Kronreif G, Unger A, et al. 3D printed patient-specific thorax phantom with realistic heterogenous bone radiopacity using filament printer technology. Zeitschrift fur medizinische Physik. 2022;32(4):438-452. doi:10.1016/j.zemedi.2022.02.001

Publication types