Feasibility of three dimensional printing of the fetal heart using spatio-temporal image correlation data

Objective To investigate the feasibility of three dimensional(3D) printing fetal heart from spatio-temporal image correlation (STIC) volume-rendered data. Methods Eight fetuses with normal heart and 3 fetuses with confirmed cardiac anomalies identified by two-dimensional echocardiography from February to May 2019 in Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University were prospectively enrolled in this study. All the fetuses underwent two-dimensional (2D) echocardiography and STIC technology examination. The 3D volume images of fetal heart were post-processed by Mimics software to create images of the fetal heart in standard tessellation language format(STL). The STL file was output to the 3D printer and the 3D printing models of fetal heart and great vessels were obtained. In the process, the numerical values of each index of fetal hearts were measured from 3D digital model, 3D printing models and routine echocardiography images, respectively. The accuracy of 3D modeling was assessed by comparing the measured values of the model with the measured values of the source data. Results In all the fetuses, STIC volume data of the fetal heart were successfully reprocessed and printed out, the anatomical structure and vascular course could be visually displayed. It showed no significant difference in all the heart size parameters between 3D digital model, 3D printing models and routine echocardiography images (all P>0.05). Moreover, the size parameters were concordant well between the two methods, all of the data points fell within the limits of agreement. Conclusions The 3D printing of fetal heart using STIC volume images as the data source is feasible. Key words: Three dimensional printing; Spatio-temporal image correlation; Congenital heart disease; Fetus