BoneMesh: An open-source 3D slicer framework for automated mesh generation and material mapping from CT to finite...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Computational Mechanics
• Medical Imaging Analysis

Background:

• Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is crucial for assessing bone strength and fracture risk using patient-specific data.
• Clinical adoption of FEA is limited by complex, time-consuming preprocessing steps.
• These steps include segmentation, mesh generation, and material property mapping from imaging data.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an automated solution for streamlining FEA model generation from clinical imaging.
• To reduce the manual effort and time required for patient-specific FEA preprocessing.
• To enhance the accessibility and efficiency of bone biomechanics research.

Main Methods:

• Developed BoneMesh, an automated meshing and material-mapping software module.
• Integrated BoneMesh into the open-source 3D Slicer platform.
• Utilized CT-based bone segmentations for direct generation of tetrahedral meshes and assignment of bone mineral density.

Main Results:

• BoneMesh demonstrated comparable or superior performance to commercial software (Abaqus, Simpleware, Bonemat).
• Verification was performed on human femur, tibia, and vertebrae CT-scans.
• Achieved targeted mesh quality parameters, including edge length accuracy and element shape factors.

Conclusions:

• BoneMesh significantly reduces manual intervention and preprocessing time in FEA.
• Offers an accessible, reliable, and efficient open-source pipeline for patient-specific FEA.
• Facilitates advancements in clinical research and potential routine clinical assessments for bone health.