How to create model for 3d printing from CT data with open source 3D Slicer

This very detailed tutorial was prepared by Nabgha Farhat, Brigham and Women's Hospital. It describes, step-by-step how to extract specific data form CT scan and convert them into format from which it can be 3d printed. She isolated portions of the mandibular bone and the temporal bone for the model. Freee and open-source Slicer software was used.
Data was acquired with:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cone_beam_computed_tomography

Tutorial has several chapters:

1. Introduction to the 3D Slicer interface
2. Loading data
3. Volume rendering and cropping
4. Creating label maps
5. Creating surface models
6. Saving data in file formats appropriate for 3D printing

Link to Slicer:

http://slicer.org/

http://wiki.slicer.org/

Slicer is a free, open source software package for visualization and image analysis. 3D Slicer is natively designed to be available on multiple platforms, including Windows, Linux and Mac Os X.




















Luis Ibanez made a post on KitWare blog, describing the process of actually printing this object:

http://www.kitware.com/blog/home/post/591




























For other medical field 3d printing applications see:

http://diy3dprinting.blogspot.com/search/label/medical%20applications%20of%203d%20printing


Source:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKLWzD0PiIc


BTW: yes, you can 3d print your own skull if you have a CT scan of it ...