Cardiovascular interventions planning through a three-dimensional printing patient-specific approach

In recent years, three-dimensional modelling and printing techniques have improved diagnosis and preprocedural planning during percutaneous interventions or surgery in cardiovascular disease. The raw data for the whole process are obtained through medical imaging, where regions of interest, that is heart chambers, valves, aorta, coronary vessels etc., are segmented and converted into three-dimensional digital models, which are then reproduced in physical replica by a three-dimensional printer. In the current article, a freeware patient-specific three-dimensional modelling and printing step-by-step procedure for preprocedural planning for complex heart diseases is presented and applied on four patients. Finally, a general discussion on the potential and future developments of personalized three-dimensional modelling and rapid prototyping for preprocedural planning is also presented.