title: Cone beam computed tomography of plastinated hearts for instruction of radiological anatomy.
abstract: Radiological anatomy education is an important aspect of the medical curriculum. The purpose of this study was to establish and demonstrate the use of plastinated anatomical specimens, specifically human hearts, for use in radiological anatomy education. Four human hearts were processed with routine plastination procedures at room temperature. Specimens were subjected to cone beam computed tomography and a graphics program (ER3D) was applied to generate 3D cardiac models. A comparison was conducted between plastinated hearts and their corresponding computer models based on a list of morphological cardiac features commonly studied in the gross anatomy laboratory. Results showed significant correspondence between plastinations and CBCT-generated 3D models (98 %; p < .01) for external structures and 100 % for internal cardiac features, while 85 % correspondence was achieved between plastinations and 2D CBCT slices. Complete correspondence (100 %) was achieved between key observations on the plastinations and internal radiological findings typically required of medical student. All pathologic features seen on the plastinated hearts were also visualized internally with the CBCT-generated models and 2D slices. These results suggest that CBCT-derived slices and models can be successfully generated from plastinated material and provide accurate representations for radiological anatomy education.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA. cwchang@hawaii.edu.
authors.forename: Chih-Wei
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Atkinson
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.
authors.forename: Niket
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gandhi
authors.affiliation: ER3D Group LLC, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA.
authors.forename: Michael L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Farrell
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.
authors.forename: Steven
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Labrash
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.
authors.forename: Alice B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Biology, Creighton University, Omaha, NB, 68178, USA.
authors.forename: Neil S
authors.initials: NS
authors.lastname: Norton
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.
authors.forename: Takashi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Matsui
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Biochemistry and Physiology, John A. Burns School of Medicine, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA.|ER3D Group LLC, Honolulu, HI, 96822, USA.
authors.forename: Scott
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lozanoff
mesh_terms: D000715:Anatomy / Q000193:education*; D054893:Cone-Beam Computed Tomography; D006321:Heart / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D011871:Radiology / Q000193:education*; D016707:Tissue Fixation / Q000379:methods*
keywords: Cone beam CT; ER3D; Heart; Plastination