Manchester General Hospital recently conducted an experiment that involved usage of the ScanTech iReal 3D scanner for facial repair and reshaping.
The iReal 3D scanner was also previously used for spine correction and implant preparation.
The body scan results demonstrated a great potential use for healthcare, since the information about a patient's physical parameters is always in demand in the medical field. Such data is very important for diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. X-ray imaging, CT, MRI – all of these methods are used for making 3D images of a patient’s internal organs.
3D body scans are used for getting data regarding outer surfaces of a human body. The data can be used for customizing the solutions such as prosthetic arms, implants, rehabilitation body protectors and orthopedic supports.
The main questions regarding acquiring 3D data of a human body are how safe, comfortable, non-contact, accurate and efficient the scanning process is. Safety and comfortableness are two reasons to use 3D scanning for a human body, since no one will use harmful technologies.
The second reason is that a human body has a complex shape and geometries and is in constant motion (facial expressions, breathing, etc). Medical 3D scanning requires working with the naked parts of a body. Moreover, some patients had received serious injuries. All of the aforementioned factors show that non-contact scanning is the best way to collect human body data.
Other important conditions for diagnostics and treatment are efficiency and accuracy. High efficiency is aimed at reducing patient suffering, while accuracy ensures that the data is complete and as close to reality as it gets. This data will be used for making personalized artificial limb prostheses, implants and other things that must perfectly fit a patient’s body.
The iReal 2S 3D scanner by ScanTech uses structured infrared light with the VCSEL technology that is not harmful. The light source is invisible, which is very useful for facial scans. There is no need to use markers during scanning, while high levels of accuracy and impressive speed warrant detailed timely results. The iReal 3D scanners are able to capture hair, eyes and dark objects. Software algorithms automatically remove overlays caused by motions. Data can be imported to other software and 3D equipment that is used in healthcare.
Case: Facial Repair and Reshaping at Manchester General Hospital
Olive Burley, a rehabilitation expert in Manchester General Hospital, evaluated the results of the experiment and now claims that the iReal 25 3D scanner is better for body scans than other systems that they’ve tried. He adds that the device meets all of the requirements for hospital use.
iReal offers highly detailed 3D scanning in just a few minutes. It can even capture brows, wrinkles and eyes with realistic texture capturing. Data is afterwards imported to a specialized software solution for custom implant design. For example, the facial scan is done before rhinoplasty. It is used for visualization of the future result and communicating with a patient. Moreover, it allows the doctors to plan the surgery with the consideration of the patient’s individual features, as well as to reduce the surgery time.
After a surgery is completed, real results are compared against the plan: this digital reshaping procedure is both innovative and practical, allowing for more accurate rhinoplasty. When evaluating efficiency of repair and reshaping, Olive Burley commented: “We are considering using iReal for repair and reshaping of other body parts.”
