This project contains depictions of male genitalia.

‘The Hypospadias Handbook’ is an interactive educational web-based application aimed at parents with children who have received a diagnosis of hypospadias.

What is hypospadias? Hypospadias is a condition which affects around 1 in 300 XY births which results in the urethral opening of the penis being further down than it usually is. In hypospadias, the urethral opening, referred to as an ‘ectopic urethral meatus’ as it is not where it is typically found, can occur anywhere from just below the glans of the penis, to down the shaft, within the scrotum and in the perineum. In cases where the ectopic urethral meatus is midshaft or lower there is often chordee (curvature of the penis) seen, and in cases where the urethral opening is even lower there can also be evidence of a bifid scrotum (where there is two scrotal sacs instead of one).

Evidence suggests that any diagnosis in a baby can be distressing, and a diagnosis of hypospadias which usually comes during routine new-born checks is no different. Many parents report feeling overwhelmed and were unaware of the condition before their child’s diagnosis. Studies have found that hypospadias information online lacks accuracy and is not accessible for the public, which can worsen parental distress if questions are going unanswered. This project therefore aims to support parents by providing the information they need to understand their child’s condition, and the anatomy behind it.

The project comprises of a dictionary section with scrollable word list, definitions and diagrams, a series of pages which contain 3D interactable models of typical male external genitalia and hypospadias genitalia, and an animation page which shows how typical male genitalia develops in-utero and the points at which hypospadias may occur.

Volumetric visualisation allows you to take patient data in the format of, for example, MRI or CT scans and turn them into 3D visualisations. This can be exceptionally useful in patient communication, surgical planning and for use as a base in further 3D modelling workflows. Presented here is a selection of volumetric visualisation work from Semester 1.

Volumetric visualisation can be separated into two types: Direct and Indirect rendering. Examples of both can be seen in the work shown here. Direct rendering can provide great levels of anatomical accuracy, while Indirect rendering often makes for cleaner images. Knowing when to use each technique, and how, is core to the volumetric visualisation course.

Another of the core courses in semester 1, our 3D modelling teaching covered the use of 3DS Max, Zbrush, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe After Effects and more. Many of us, myself included, went from no modelling experience to being able to competently design and deliver a medical animation featuring 3D modelling.

My animation ‘The anatomy of a Cowboy’ took a fun twist on the classic muscle flex video we have all seen many times. A bicep muscle was sculpted from scratch, textured, painted and animated onto a skeleton base which was provided to us (but upper limb textured by each of us). Adobe After Effects was then used to edit the rendered animation, which involved adding freeze frames, slow-motion and anatomical labels.