Tissue mimicking materials in image-guided needle-based interventions: A review

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Imaging
• Materials Science

Background:

• Image-guided interventions are crucial in modern healthcare, revolutionizing medical procedures.
• Medical trainees require hands-on experience, but patient-based training is limited due to skill certification requirements.
• Tissue-mimicking materials in training phantoms are essential for simulating image-guided interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review tissue-mimicking materials used in training phantoms for image-guided needle-based interventions.
• To investigate and compare the microstructure, mechanical, optical, and acoustical properties of these materials with human tissues.
• To summarize base materials, additives, concentrations, and their influence on phantom characteristics.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of training phantom materials used in the last ten years.
• Analysis of microstructure, mechanical, optical, and acoustical properties.
• Comparison of experimental methods, apparatus, and theoretical algorithms used in material characterization.

Main Results:

• Summary of widely used base materials, additives, and their concentrations in tissue-mimicking materials.
• Detailed investigation of how material concentrations affect microstructure, mechanical, optical, and acoustical properties.
• Classification of these influences and comparison with human tissue properties.

Conclusions:

• Tissue-mimicking materials are vital for developing effective training phantoms for image-guided interventions.
• Understanding material properties and their relationship to concentrations is key for accurate simulation.
• This review provides a comprehensive overview, highlighting accomplishments, limitations, and future recommendations for material development.