Neonatal echocardiography is vital for early detection of heart anomalies in newborns, enabling timely, non-invasive interventions where 4D ultrasound, adds the dimension of time to 3D imaging, enhances diagnostic capabilities by visualizing real-time heart dynamics. However, training for 4D neonatal echocardiography is limited by the lack of simulators that support 4D Ultrasound volume visualization within gamified environments. This paper introduces EchoSim4D, an XR-based simulator leveraging novel pipeline for visualizing 4D volume data in Unity, incorporating real-time volume reconstruction, and a preloaded version optimized for low-end systems. EchoSim4D integrates a sensor-equipped manikin and a custom 3D-printed transducer with a 6-DOF sensor, replicating the precise probe maneuvers necessary for neonatal echocardiography. In a validation study with postgraduate medical students (0-5 years of experience), supervised by a domain expert, EchoSim4D demonstrated high visual fidelity and training efficacy. Findings suggest that 4D visualization techniques hold significant potential for advancing medical training in neonatal echocardiography.

翻译：新生儿超声心动图对于早期发现新生儿心脏异常至关重要，能够实现及时、无创的干预。其中，4D超声在3D成像基础上增加了时间维度，通过可视化实时心脏动态来增强诊断能力。然而，4D新生儿超声心动图的培训因缺乏能在游戏化环境中支持4D超声体积可视化的模拟器而受到限制。本文介绍了EchoSim4D，这是一款基于扩展现实（XR）的模拟器，它利用新颖的流程在Unity中实现4D体积数据的可视化，集成了实时体积重建功能，并提供了一个针对低端系统优化的预加载版本。EchoSim4D整合了一个配备传感器的婴儿模型和一个带有6自由度传感器的定制3D打印换能器，复现了新生儿超声心动图所需的精确探头操作。在一项由领域专家监督、针对研究生医学生（0-5年经验）的验证研究中，EchoSim4D展现了高度的视觉保真度和培训效果。研究结果表明，4D可视化技术在推进新生儿超声心动图医学培训方面具有巨大潜力。