Aims and objectives
According to the World Health Organization,
cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in the world [1].
Thus,
it is necessary that radiology professionals acknowledge the procedures and protocols that involve cardiac exams.
Therefore,
the aim of this work is to develop a dynamic cardiac simulator,
which allows the training of students and professionals without the need to expose patients to ionizing radiation unnecessarily.
Methods and materials
The dynamic cardiac phantom was developed by using a cardiac simulator consisting of latex and cannulas that simulate the pulmonary and systemic circulation (Fig.1).
The internal components are showed in the Fig.
2.
The cardiac simulator has four chambers that represent two atria and two ventricles.
A septum separates the chambers between right and left side.
Between the atria and the ventricles are located septa that simulate the atrioventricular valves,
that is,
they allow the passage of fluid from the atria to the ventricles and...
Results
The phantom developed in this work (Fig.
4) resembles dynamic phantoms presented in the literature [2,3] that reproduce the heart rate during the simulation of radiological procedures.
A differential of the presented simulator is the possibility of changing the rotation time of the servomotor horns in the developed code,
which allows simulating pathologies such as cardiac arrhythmias.
A radiographic image (Fig.
5) shows the internal components of the phantom.
The image showed in the Fig.
6 was recorded in a fluoroscopy equipment and indicated that...
Conclusion
The developed simulator allows independent control of the compression of each chamber of the cardiac phantom.
This can contribute to professional training through simulation,
making it possible to prepare students for different situations that can be experienced in practice,
as well as to improve protocols to reduce doses of radiation and errors in procedures.
Improvements are being made to prevent fluid reflux and also to vary the heart rate frequency to simulate atrial and ventricular arrhythmias.
References
[1] WHO.
World Health Organization.
Cardiovascular Diseases.
[cited 12 Dezember 2017].
Available from: <http://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/cardiovascular-diseases-(cvds)>.
[2] MAEDA Y et al.
Development of a novel 3D dynamic cardiac phantom simulated human anatomy.
J Nucl Med May 1,
59(1),
2018.
[3] TOLEDO JM.
Modelos,
simuladores,
dosimetria e respostas imunológicas radioinduzidas em cintilografia de perfusão do miocárdio.
[thesis].
Belo Horizonte (MG): Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; 2014.