An open-access plug-in program for 3D modelling distinct material properties of cortical and trabecular bone

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Computational Mechanics
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Finite element modeling (FEM) of bone material behavior in-silico aids in predicting optimal surgical treatments for individual patients.
• Accurate material property definition is crucial for reliable in-silico predictions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and demonstrate a pre-processing plug-in for 3D modeling software to define patient-specific bone material properties.
• To facilitate the creation of realistic and personalized simulations for surgical decision-making.

Main Methods:

• Utilized Synopsys Simpleware ScanIP software with a custom plug-in.
• Calibrated grayscale values using a standardized phantom to define densities.
• Converted apparent density to Young's Modulus using a power law equation for cortical and trabecular bone.

Main Results:

• Successfully identified, isolated, and defined material properties of cortical and trabecular bone from patient-specific CT scans.
• Developed a workflow for generating calibrated scans suitable for FEM.
• Demonstrated the conversion of CT scan data into material properties for in-silico analysis.

Conclusions:

• The developed plug-in enables the creation of realistic, personalized simulations for surgical planning.
• The open-access plug-in enhances the accessibility of advanced in-silico modeling techniques.
• This approach supports informed surgical decision-making through patient-specific computational modeling.