An interactive and realistic phantom for cricothyroidotomy simulation of a patient with obesity through a reusable design using 3D-printing and Arduino.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Proper airway management during emergencies can prevent serious complications. However, cricothyroidotomy is challenging in patients with obesity. Since this technique is not performed frequently but at a critical time, the opportunity for trainees is rare. Simulators for these procedures are also lacking. Therefore, we proposed a realistic and interactive cricothyroidotomy simulator.

METHODS: All anatomical structures were modeled based on computed tomography images of a patient with obesity. To mimic the feeling of incision during cricothyroidotomy, the incision site was modeled to distinguish between the skin and fat. To reinforce the educational purpose, capacitive touch sensors were attached to the artery, vein, and thyroid to generate audio feedback. The tensile strength of the silicone-cast skin was measured to verify the similarity of the mechanical properties between humans and our model. The fabrication and assembly accuracies of the phantom between the Standard Tessellation Language and the fabricated model were evaluated. Audio feedback through sensing the anatomy parts and utilization was evaluated.

RESULTS: The body, skull, clavicle, artery, vein, and thyroid were fabricated using fused deposition modeling (FDM) with polylactic acid. A skin mold was fabricated using FDM with thermoplastic polyurethane. A fat mold was fabricated using stereolithography apparatus (SLA) with a clear resin. The airway and tongue were fabricated using SLA with an elastic resin. The tensile strength of the skin using silicone with and without polyester mesh was 2.63 ± 0.68 and 2.46 ± 0.21 MPa. The measurement errors for fabricating and assembling parts of the phantom between the STL and the fabricated models were -0.08 ± 0.19 mm and 0.13 ± 0.64 mm. The measurement errors internal anatomy embodied surfaces in fat part were 0.41 ± 0.89 mm. Audio feedback was generated 100% in all the areas tested. The realism, understanding of clinical skills, and intention to retrain were 7.1, 8.8, and 8.3 average points.

CONCLUSIONS: Our simulator can provide a realistic simulation experience for trainees through a realistic feeling of incision and audio feedback, which can be used for actual clinical education.