Conceptual design of a minimally invasive cranioplasty (mic) surgery

• Main Author: Teng, Hui Dan
• Other Authors: Yeo Joon Hock
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Mechanical engineering
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/61285
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Cranioplasty implies plastic reconstruction of the skull. Although there have been numerous efforts to evaluate and improve the choice of materials and design of implant, to date, the procedure of cranioplasty remains basically unchanged and is highly invasive. The focus of this final year project is to review the entire cranioplasty surgical process and explore the possibility of an innovative design that is less invasive or minimally invasive. After much design and procedure scrutiny of cranioplasty, an innovative approach to allow the implant to be inserted horizontally was conceptualized. This concept was further refined after consultation with a neurosurgeon. This concept was put through 3-D Computer Aided Design (CAD) modeling for better visualization. The solid model in CAD was further refined and following a physical model was built through rapid prototyping process, for functional evaluation.. Results have shown that the design could be evaluated and refined through a curvature fit test and assessing the structure integrity of the prototypes. After every evaluation, the fundamental 3-D CAD model was modified and refined before the printing of the next prototype. The 3-D CAD model was refined until the final prototype was able to sit well on the defective mannequin head and showed good integrity. A flexible screwdriver created has also proven the possibility of fastening the screws onto the surrounding bone through a curved screw path, starting from a one-point entry at the top of the prototype to the screw hole. The results highlighted that the implant design can be optimized without the use of a 3D scanner. Lastly, Finite Element Analysis (FEA) was performed to validate the mechanical strength of the implant. Results from FEA shows that the newly designed implant to be sturdy and to be able to protect the brain as well as the skull from mechanical trauma. This FYP was concluded with an innovative implant for cranioplasty surgery that is possibly less invasive. A prototype implant was built and functional test will be conduct in future work.