Comparison of Flexible 3D Printed Stenotic Airway Model Versus Standard Model for Therapeutic Bronchoscopy Training a...

This study aimed to determine operator impressions of an airway obstruction procedure using a custom silicone model of low cost and high accuracy.

Current procedural education for therapeutic bronchoscopy relies on animal models, supervised in-patient training, and inanimate artificial models. Model manufacturing via lost-wax casting allows for the flexibility of the material selection and reproduction of complex airway shapes.

A patient computed tomography scan was anonymized and segmented into a stereolithographic (STL) file. The water dissolvable interior airway mold was 3-dimensional (D) printed using polyvinyl alcohol and the exterior mold was printed with polylactic acid. Flexible silicone was injected into the mold. During advanced bronchoscopy courses (2017-2018) at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, participants were asked to evaluate both standard bronchoscopy manikin and the manikin with 3D customization.

We evaluated 17 participants with different levels in training in the pulmonary field. All of them reported that they previously have performed >100 bronchoscopies, 88% having treated patients with airway stenosis. In total, 77% of participants thought the 3D model was better or much better for airway inspection when compared with Broncho-Boy. Overall, 94% of participants reported the 3D model was accurate or very accurate for realism. In total, 69% of trainees reported the overall experience as excellent. All of them reported 3D model would improve their skills on stent placement.

3D printing with silicone lost wax casting can be used to reproduce airway abnormalities for tactile simulation bronchoscopy. Reproducible custom airway models can be created for a relatively low cost.