Development and Radiological Validation of a Low-Cost Anthropomorphic Orbital Phantom for CT Dosimetry and Radiation Therapy Applications

Abstract

Author(s): Walid Allioui1,2.3*, Abdellah khallouqi1, Hamza Sekkat1, A. Slimani1, Abdellah halimi1, Omar El rhazouani1

This study aimed to develop and characterize a low-cost anthropomorphic orbital phantom based on epoxy resin tissue-equivalent materials for computed tomography (CT) and radiation therapy applications. The phantom incorporated four main orbital structures, including orbital bone, extraocular muscles, optic nerve, and crystalline lens, using optimized epoxy-based composite formulations. Radiological characterization was performed through effective atomic number, electron density, mass attenuation coefficient, and CT number analyses over energy ranges extending from 10KeV to 25 MeV. In the diagnostic energy range (60–200 keV), the average deviations in mass attenuation coefficients were approximately −1.2% for orbital bone, +1.6% for the crystalline lens, −0.2% for extraocular muscle, and −0.3% for the optic nerve. At high energies (200 keV–25 MeV), the average deviations remained low, with values of approximately −1.6%, +0.09%, −1.0%, and −1.1% for bone, lens, muscle, and optic nerve, respectively. The experimentally measured CT numbers also showed close agreement with the corresponding human tissues, with values of 601.1±60 HU for bone, 36.0±2.1 HU for muscle, 34.7±2.0 HU for optic nerve, and 65.2±6.8 HU for the crystalline lens. These results confirm the suitability of the developed materials for reproducing the attenuation and radiation interaction properties of orbital tissues under both diagnostic and therapeutic conditions.

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