Designing ultrasound phantom simulating veins

Description

Heping healthcare professionals train themself to gestural guidance using ultrasound scan.

Activity F2 held online on November 18 2021, 10:30 to 12:00.

Facilitated by EchOpen.

Video

To be released.

Notes

Mathilde and Benoit are demonstrating the making of a phantom that can be used for low-cost training in the use of an ecograph. (commercial phantoms are expensive).

The matrix is made of water, agar-agar, maize-flour (to make a better surrogate for tissue and also to make the gel matrix opaque) and some antiseptic agent (chloride, or other - to ensure a longer shelf life for the phantom). The matrix is put on a hot plate. From 60C or so it starts to set (sticks to the spoon)

Then they fill thin balloons with a colored water - these will act as “arteries/veins/vessels” in the matrix.

The plates with holes are meant to hold the balloons in place when the matrix is going to “set”. One needs to ensure the holes on either side are aligned  - and to straighten / tighten the balloons so thay are not too “floppy”.

The holes must be configured to create several “layers” of arteries (3D).

The filled balloons are left in the matrix that will then “set”. This can be put in cold water to set faster.

Benoit and Mathilde demonstrate their first prototypes with its shortfalls.

This experiment is based on https://www.researchgate.net/publication/284913884_Agar_ultrasound_phantoms_for_low-cost_training_without_refrigeration

The phantom for echography should now be ready

Here we use an echograph that has about 20 years, there is no mechanical part, everything is electronic.

We have to put some gel on the nose to ease the continuity of contact, as ultrasound is not capture through air

On such echograph we have different noses with specific frequencies, so we need to select the right one

So here we see a first scan with black circles that show where the veins are. The white line is the bottom of the box, and the small grains are the corn which was put into agar-agar. Now we will try to use a syringe to get into a vein by watching the scan.