A preliminary study of dynamic interactive simulation and computational CT scan of the ideal alveolus model

Abstract

BackgroundWhile the development of CT imaging technique has brought cognition of in vivo organs, the resolution of CT images and their static characteristics have gradually become barriers of microscopic tissue research.PurposePrevious research used the finite element method to study the airflow and gas exchange in the alveolus and acinar to show the fate of inhaled aerosols and studied the diffusive, convective, and sedimentation mechanisms. Our study combines these techniques with CT scan simulation to study the mechanisms of respiratory movement and its imaging appearance.MethodsWe use 3D fluid‐structure interaction simulation to study the movement of an ideal alveolus under regular and forced breathing situations and ill alveoli with different tissue elasticities. Additionally, we use the Monte Carlo algorithm within the OpenGATE platform to simulate the computational CT images of the dynamic process with different designated resolutions. The resolutions show the relationship between the kinematic model of the human alveolus and its imaging appearance.ResultsThe results show that the alveolus and the wall thickness can be seen with an image resolution smaller than 15.6 μm. With ordinary CT resolution, the alveolus is expressed with four voxels.ConclusionsThis is a preliminary study concerning the imaging appearance of the dynamic alveolus model. This technique will be used to study the imaging appearance of the dynamic bronchial tree and the lung lobe models in the future.