03 December 2013

Personalised Virtual Birth Simulator

Computer scientists from the University of East Anglia are working to create a virtual birthing simulator that will help doctors and midwives prepare for unusual or dangerous births. The new programme will take into account factors such as the shape of the mother’s body and the positioning of the baby to provide patient-specific birth predictions.


The simulation software will see ultra-sound data used to re-create a geometric model of a baby’s skull and body in 3D graphics as well as the mother’s body and pelvis. Programmers are also taking into account the force from the mother pushing during labour and are even modelling a ‘virtual’ midwife’s hands which can interact with the baby’s head.

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