Creation of the Chinese visible human data set

• Published in: The anatomical record. Part B, New anatomist New anatomist, 2003-12, Vol.275B (1), p.190-195
• Main Authors: Zhang, Shao‐Xiang, Heng, Pheng‐Ann, Liu, Zheng‐Jin, Tan, Li‐Wen, Qiu, Ming‐Guo, Li, Qi‐Yu, Liao, Rong‐Xia, Li, Kai, Cui, Gao‐Yu, Guo, Yan‐Li, Yang, Xiao‐Ping, Liu, Guang‐Jiu, Shan, Jing‐Lu, Liu, Ji‐Jun, Zhang, Wei‐Guo, Chen, Xian‐Hong, Chen, Jin‐Hua, Wang, Jian, Chen, Wei, Lu, Ming, You, Jian, Pang, Xue‐Li, Xiao, Hong, Xie, Yong‐Ming
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 3D reconstruction; Anatomy, Cross-Sectional - methods; Asian; Asian Continental Ancestry Group; CAM; China; Chinese visible human; computer assisted medicine; Computer Simulation; Education, Medical - methods; Female; Humans; imaging; Imaging, Three-Dimensional; Male; medical education; Models, Anatomic
• ISSN: 1552-4906; 1552-4914
• DOI: 10.1002/ar.b.10035

The United States Visible Human Project (VHP) created a digital image data set of complete human male (data acquisition finished in November 1994) and female (data acquisition finished in December 1995) cadavers in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), computed tomography (CT), and anatomical (anatomic serial section) modes. VHP aroused worldwide enthusiasm for Visible Human Research (VHR), and the data set is being used in a variety of research and educational domains. The Visible Korean Human (VKH) male was produced in March 2001. To accelerate worldwide VHR and to promote virtual anatomy as a revolutionary break with conventional anatomy, more visible human data sets representative of different populations of the world are in demand. The Chinese Visible Human (CVH) male (created in October 2002) and female (created in February 2003) project achieved greater integrity of images, easier blood vessel identification, and were free of organic lesion (unlike the other visible human projects). We performed data acquisition, three‐dimensional (3D) reconstruction, and visualization with improved technology to create CVH male and female. CVH is the first volumetric data representing a complete normal adult human male and female of an Asian population. This article presents the history of Chinese Visible Human cadavers and the methods and technology used to produce the data set. Anat Rec (Part B: New Anat) 275B:190–195, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.