Building a three-dimensional model of the upper gastrointestinal tract for computer simulations of swallowing

We aimed to provide realistic three-dimensional (3D) models to be used in numerical simulations of peristaltic flow in patients exhibiting difficulty in swallowing, also known as dysphagia. To this end, a 3D model of the upper gastrointestinal tract was built from the color cryosection images of the Visible Human Project dataset. Regional color heterogeneities were corrected by centering local histograms of the image difference between slices. A voxel-based model was generated by stacking contours from the color images. A triangle mesh was built, smoothed and simplified. Visualization tools were developed for browsing the model at different stages and for virtual endoscopy navigation. As result, a computer model of the esophagus and the stomach was obtained, mainly for modeling swallowing disorders. A central-axis curve was also obtained for virtual navigation and to replicate conditions relevant to swallowing disorders modeling. We show renderings of the model and discuss its use for simulating swallowing as a function of bolus rheological properties. The information obtained from simulation studies with our model could be useful for physicians in selecting the correct nutritional emulsions for patients with dysphagia.