Validation and enhancement of a vocal fold medial surface 3D reconstruction approach for in-vivo application

In laryngeal research, studying the vertical vocal fold oscillation component is often disregarded. However, vocal fold oscillation by its nature is a three-dimensional process. In the past, we have developed an in-vivo experimental protocol to reconstruct the full, three-dimensional vocal fold vibration. The goal of this study is to validate this 3D reconstruction method. We present an in-vivo canine hemilarynx setup using high-speed video recording and a right-angle prism for 3D reconstruction of vocal fold medial surface vibrations. The 3D surface is reconstructed from the split image provided by the prism. For validation, reconstruction error was calculated for objects located at a distance of up to 15 mm away from the prism. The influence of camera angle, changing calibrated volume, and calibration errors were determined. Overall average 3D reconstruction error is low and does not exceed 0.12 mm at 5 mm distance from the prism. Influence of a moderate (5°) and large (10°) deviation in camera angle led to a slight increase in error to 0.16 mm and 0.17 mm, respectively. This procedure is robust towards changes in calibration volume and small calibration errors. This makes this 3D reconstruction approach a useful tool for the reconstruction of accessible and moving tissue surfaces.