Application of Three-Dimensional Printing Technology in the Perioperative Management of Cardiac Tumours: A Review and Analysis.

BACKGROUND

Multimodal imaging plays a crucial role in evaluating suspected cardiac tumours. In recent years, three-dimensional (3D) printing technology has continued to advance such that image-based 3D-printed models have been incorporated into the auxiliary diagnosis and treatment of cardiac tumour diseases. The purpose of this review is to analyze the existing literature on the application of 3D printing in cardiac tumour surgery to examine the current status of the application of this technology.

METHODS

By searching PubMed, Cochrane, Scopus and Google Scholar, as well as other resource databases, a completed review of the available literature was performed. Effect sizes from published studies were investigated, and results are presented concerning the use of 3D surgical planning in the management of cardiac tumours.

RESULTS

According to the reviewed literature, our study comes to the point that 3D printing is a valuable technique for planning surgery for cardiac tumours. As shown in the review report, Mucinous and sarcomatous tumours are the most commonly used tumours for 3D printing, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) are the most commonly used technologies for preparing 3D printing models, the main printing technology is stereolithography, and the most used 3D modeling software is Mimics. The printing time and cost required for 3D printing are affected by factors such as the size of the type, complexity, the printed material and the 3D printing technology used. The reported research shows that 3D printing can understand the anatomy of complex tumour cases, virtual surgical simulation, as well as facilitate doctor-patient communication and clinical teaching.

CONCLUSIONS

These results show that the development of 3D printing technology has brought more accurate and safe perioperative treatment options for patients with cardiac tumours. Therefore, 3D printing technology is expected to become a routine clinical diagnosis and treatment tool for cardiac tumours.