Additive Manufacturing Techniques for the Reconstruction of 3D Fetal Faces

Domenico Speranza; Daniela Citro; Francesco Padula; Barbara Motyl; Federica Marcolin; Michele Calì; Massimo Martorelli

doi:10.1155/2017/9701762

Additive Manufacturing Techniques for the Reconstruction of 3D Fetal Faces

Appl Bionics Biomech. 2017:2017:9701762. doi: 10.1155/2017/9701762. Epub 2017 Dec 19.

Authors

Domenico Speranza¹, Daniela Citro¹, Francesco Padula², Barbara Motyl³, Federica Marcolin⁴, Michele Calì⁵, Massimo Martorelli⁶

Affiliations

¹ Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, Cassino, Italy.
² Department of Prenatal Diagnosis, ALTAMEDICA, Fetal Maternal Medical Centre, Rome, Italy.
³ Polytechnic Department of Engineering and Architecture, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.
⁴ Department of Management and Production Engineering, Polytechnic of Turin, Turin, Italy.
⁵ Department of Electric, Electronics and Computer Engineering, University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
⁶ Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy.

Abstract

This paper deals with additive manufacturing techniques for the creation of 3D fetal face models starting from routine 3D ultrasound data. In particular, two distinct themes are addressed. First, a method for processing and building 3D models based on the use of medical image processing techniques is proposed. Second, the preliminary results of a questionnaire distributed to future parents consider the use of these reconstructions both from an emotional and an affective point of view. In particular, the study focuses on the enhancement of the perception of maternity or paternity and the improvement in the relationship between parents and physicians in case of fetal malformations, in particular facial or cleft lip diseases.