3D Printing Technology-Assisted Endoscopy Surgery in the Treatment of Skull Base Tumors : A retrospective study

Abstract Object 3D printing technology has becoming more and more popular in medicine, we aim to describe the application experiences of 3D printing technology in endoscopic surgery for skull base tumors, with the assessment of 3D-printed models in skull base endoscopic surgery simulation and anatomy learning.Method Five patients with 3D-printed models were enrolled in our institution from October 2015 to March 2019. 5 individual models, created by different 3D printing methods and printing materials, were used to design the optimal surgical approach before surgery. Besides, the 3D-printed models were applied in endoscopic surgery simulation and anatomy learning. Likert scale questionnaires (1 indicating strongly disagree; 2, disagree; 3, neutral; 4, agree; and 5, strongly agree) were administered to 9 neurosurgeons in our institution to evaluate the application of 3D printed models. Result We successfully printed 5 cases of complex skull base tumor 3D models and performed endoscopic surgery with the help of information of the 5 3D-printed models. Evaluation of the Likert scores showed that model 4 which was printed by the mixed photosensitive resin material was the most conducive in surgery simulation and anatomy learning. The mean (standard deviation) 3D printing time is 16.3 (4.96) hours, and the mean (SD) printing cost is 4,500 (1183.22) RMB.Conclusion 3D printing technology has a high value in the application of endoscopic surgery for skull base tumors. The fast 3D printing time can satisfy the requirement of tight preoperative inspection time. Besides, the average price is acceptable for patients and clinical anatomy learning. The combination of the technology of 3D printing and the techniques of skull base endoscopy shows many unique advantages.