Evaluation of The Quality of Anatomical Specimens Produced with Room Temperature Plastination Using KE-108 Silicone
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Abstract
This study was aimed at evaluating the quality of porcine hearts and kidneys produced from a room-temperature plastination using industrial KE-108 liquid silicone. All plastination processes, including formalin fixation, acetone dehydration, and forced impregnation with KE-108 silicone liquid, were conducted at room temperatures between 28-33 oC. The specimen’s volume, surface hardness, and color parameters (brightness, green-to-red and blue-to-yellow shades) were measured and compared between the control groups (the fresh and the formalin-fixed organs) and the organs derived from the plastination process using 1.5%, 2%, and 5% catalyst ratios. The results showed that all porcine hearts and kidneys produced from this technique maintained their anatomical shape and structures. All color parameter values were not affected by the plastination process. Although the plastination process caused significant shrinkage and increased their surface hardness in both hearts and kidneys, the specimens still had good quality. To determine the effects of different catalyst-to-polymer ratios in the force impregnation on the quality of products, the results showed that specimens produced from different catalyst-to-polymer ratios had similar quality. These proved that this technique is suitable for producing anatomical teaching media.
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References
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