Error analysis of FDM fabricated medical replicas

Purpose - Recent advancement in fused deposition modelling (FDM) rapid prototyping technology has made it a viable technology for application in reconstructive surgery. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the errors generated during the fabrication stage of complex anatomical replicas derived from computed tomography coupled with the technique of FDM. Design/methodology/approach - An evaluation on the errors generated during the fabrication process of two anatomical parts (skull or mandible) for different human sizes (infant, female or male) is carried out. A comparison between the linear measurements of 11 landmarks on the virtual model of a skull and nine for the mandible of patient specific and its replica is conducted. Furthermore, eight landmarks are chosen to evaluate the bone thickness variation over the fabricated replicas. Findings - Although the FDM technology proved the ability to manufacture and to fit prosthesis to a patient's unique proportions quickly and with relatively low cost, the model accuracy is a key factor to the applicability of such technology. The results show undersized replicas with an overall absolute average deviation of 0.24 per cent with an average standard deviation of 0.16 per cent of the skull models and 0.22 per cent with a 0.11 per cent standard deviation of the mandibles. Furthermore, a high level of accuracy is reflected in the representation of the measured bone thickness with deviations in the order of 100th of a millimetre being reported. Originality/value - The paper demonstrates an outstanding accuracy using FDM process for the fabrication of anatomical replicas using models of different human sizes and gender in comparison to other established rapid prototyping techniques.