Three-dimensional surface models of detailed lumbosacral structures reconstructed from the Visible Korean.

Unlike volume models, surface models representing hollow, three-dimensional images have a small file size; allowing them to be displayed, rotated, and modified in real time. Therefore, surface models of lumbosacral structures can be effectively used for interactive simulation of, e.g., virtual lumbar puncture, virtual surgery of herniated lumbar discs, and virtual epidural anesthesia. In this paper, we present surface models of extensive lumbosacral structures which can be used in medical simulation systems. One-hundred and thirty-eight chosen structures included the spinal cord, lumbar and sacral nerves, vertebrae, intervertebral discs, ligaments, muscles, arteries, and skin. The structures were outlined in the sectioned images from the Visible Korean. From these outlined images, serial outlines of each structure were stacked. Adopting commercial software (3D-DOCTOR, Maya), an advanced surface reconstruction technique was applied to create a surface model of the structure. In the surface models, we observed the anatomical relationships of the lumbosacral structures (e.g., cauda equina and ligaments) in detail. Additionally, the portions of some spinal nerves that could not be outlined were drawn and added to the surface models. These constructed models will hopefully facilitate development of high quality medical simulation of the lumbosacral region.