Usefulness of personalized three-dimensional printed model on the satisfaction of preoperative education for patients undergoing robot-assisted partial nephrectomy and their families

Objective To clarify the usefulness of a personalized three-dimensional (3D) printed model of the kidney for preoperative education among patients who underwent robot-assisted partial nephrectomy (RAPN). Methods Twenty-nine cases of patients who planned to undergo RAPN and 19 of their families participated in this study. A three-dimensional model consisting of the kidney, tumors, ureter, inferior vena cava, and abdominal aorta in each case was generated using a Z Printer 450 based on the findings of preoperative enhanced CT. After preoperative education using enhanced CT and a 3D-printed model, two anatomy-related issues, three tumor-related issues, and two surgical procedure-related issues were evaluated using a visual analogue scale. Results The median age of all participants was 64 years old. The rate in male patients was significantly higher than that in families. In all three issues in patients and in two of three issues in families, scores in the 3D model were significantly higher than those in CT. In all issues in CT, scores of patients 64 years old or younger were higher than those of patients 65 years old or higher. On the other hand, no significant difference was found in the 3D model for scores on two of three issues regardless of the age of participants. Conclusion Our data indicate that the personalized 3D printed model of the kidney is useful for preoperative education among patients and their families who underwent RAPN, especially in elderly people.