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As sonography (US) continues to become a mainstay in medicine, both as a screening device and as a procedural tool, the use of task-based sonographic trainers (i.e., phantoms) in medical training has become increasingly necessary. This is especially true for what has been termed ‘the global use of US’, or the use of US as an imperative tool during structural planning and placement of peripheral and central lines within patients in emergency and hospital settings. However, despite the frequency and technicality of US-guided procedures involving arterial and venous line placement, the benefit of such hands-on US simulation training for employees and professional students alike is often outweighed by cost. The current market for US trainers displaying human forearm anatomy and branching vessels comes at a high price tag of over 2,000 USD per model. The authors’ experiment utilises 3D printing techniques and biodegradable ballistics gel to create a cost-effective, versatile, and yet realistic peripheral line simulator in order to cultivate real-time learning of arterial/venous arm anatomy, while providing mechanical practice for needle driving and US technique, all at a fraction of the commercial price.

Ultrasonography is often the preferred method of imaging for needle-guided procedures of the hip joint, including aspirations, local anaesthetic injections, and the use of corticosteroids. Phantoms (i.e., training devices mimicking human tissue and bony structures under acoustic sonography) are used to help train medical professionals to perform these procedures accurately, emphasising the art of physical simulation in unison with didactic learning. In the authors’ study, 3D printing technology was used to simulate an anatomically accurate human hip joint, with the hopes of creating an affordable and customisable ultrasound hip trainer, allowing novice sonographers to practice guided injections to hone their skills before performing these procedures on human subjects.

The use of musculoskeletal ultrasound is expanding in many medical disciplines, and simulation trainers have been successfully employed to help practitioners learn various ultrasound techniques. While there are fewer commercial trainers in musculoskeletal ultrasound than other ultrasound modalities, the ones that do exist can be prohibitively expensive. Several less expensive phantom trainers have been described in the literature, including those made of ballistic gelatine. The authors present a three-dimensional printed knee phantom that was overlaid with ballistic gelatine as a viable option for training.