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TissueDB/Simulators/Abdominal Wall Defect Simulator (Medeiros)

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Finished WALL-GO gastroschisis and omphalocele mannequins. Figure 3 by Medeiros GA et al., BMC Medical Education 2023; CC BY 4.0.

The Abdominal Wall Defect Simulator ("WALL-GO") is a pair of low-cost neonatal mannequins, built from locally available materials, for visually recognising and telling apart two congenital abdominal wall defects — gastroschisis and omphalocele. Each mannequin is built for one defect only, so the two are not interchangeable.[1]

Field Details
Features and Basic Operation The finished models are used by visual inspection: the two are compared and the defects told apart by location and by the presence or absence of a covering sac. Gastroschisis shows exposed bowel loops to the right of the umbilicus with no covering; omphalocele shows viscera at the umbilicus covered by a translucent membranous sac. A small incision in the sac can simulate membrane rupture.
Current Development Status Built and tested; shown validity under certain circumstances.[1]
Estimated Build Time and Cost
US$42
Not stated in source.
Specialized Tools and Equipment None — only ordinary household items are used (scissors, glue, pens, and white correction fluid).
Version Version one — the first published WALL-GO build.
Development Team Contact Information Developed by Gabriel Araújo Medeiros and colleagues, with senior author Lourenço Sbragia (pediatric surgeon), at the University of São Paulo (Bauru and Ribeirão Preto Medical Schools), Brazil. Correspondence: sbragia@fmrp.usp.br.

Source — every material, build step and cost on this page is drawn from Medeiros et al., BMC Medical Education 2023 unless a cell notes otherwise.

Tissues

Tissue Qty Material Cost Notes
Skin and Subcutaneous Tissue 2 Vinyl doll US$20 The neonatal doll gives the torso, the skin and the umbilical landmark. The builder cuts its abdominal wall to make the defect.
Small Intestine 1 Sausage US$0.50 Herniated bowel loops; perishable, so the gastroschisis model is effectively single-use (the authors suggest a red cotton ball wrapped in cellophane tape as a durable substitute). The source lists fake blood makeup among the materials but does not state where it is applied. It notes the blood can be confused for bowel damage and suggests removing it in future versions.
Peritoneum and Serosa 1 Yellow cellophane paper US$0.50 Omphalocele model only — forms the membranous sac over the viscera; a small incision in it can simulate membrane rupture.
Umbilical Cord 1 Not specified in source — Figures 3 and 4 show a clamped cord on both mannequins. Table 2 lists nine materials with sizes and prices. It gives no purpose for any material. The source does not say which material forms the cord.

Structural Parts

Part Name Qty Material Cost Notes
Umbilical cord clamp 1 Umbilical cord clamp US$1 Clamps the umbilical cord. One of the paper's expert reviewers judged the clamp to sit too close to the viscera, and the authors list moving it away as a change for the next version of the model.
Latex tourniquet tube 5 mm × 1 m Latex tourniquet tube US$4.00 Listed and costed in the source's materials table (Table 2). The source does not state what this material is used for.
Pink fabric tape 48 mm × 1 m Pink fabric tape US$6.00 Listed and costed in the source's materials table (Table 2). The source does not state what this material is used for.
Female condom 3 Female condom US$3.00 Listed and costed in the source's materials table (Table 2), which gives no measurement for it. The source does not state what this material is used for — in particular it is not the membranous sac, which the source builds from yellow cellophane paper.

Consumables

Consumable Quantity Material Approximate Cost Notes
Fake blood makeup 20 mL Fake blood makeup US$4.00 Listed and costed in the source's materials table (Table 2). The source does not state where this material is applied. It notes the blood can be confused for bowel damage and suggests removing it in future versions.
Talcum powder 100 g Talcum powder US$3.00 Listed and costed in the source's materials table (Table 2). The source states only that cosmetics were applied to the mannequins so they would resemble newborns; it does not say individually what the talcum powder does.

Build Instructions

Phase 1: Prepare the doll bodies

  1. Obtain two 40 cm vinyl dolls, one for each defect model.
  2. Make a 4 cm circular incision to the right of the umbilicus on the first doll (gastroschisis).
  3. Make a 4 cm circular incision in the umbilical region of the second doll (omphalocele).

Verification: Each doll has a 4 cm opening — to the right of the umbilicus on the gastroschisis model and central on the omphalocele model.

Phase 2: Build and place the viscera

  1. Cut a length of sausage for the herniated intestinal loops. The source's materials table gives 15 mm × 15 cm; its text describes a sausage of about 25 cm.
  2. The source lists 20 ml of fake blood makeup among the materials. It does not say where the blood is applied, so the placement is the builder's decision.
  3. Place the viscera through the gastroschisis opening so they protrude, uncovered.
  4. Form the umbilical cord and position it on the gastroschisis model, separated from the herniated bowel loops. The source does not name the material used for the cord.
  5. Cover the viscera at the omphalocele opening with yellow cellophane paper (0.5 m²) to form the membranous sac; a small incision in it can simulate membrane rupture.
  6. Clamp the umbilical cord with the umbilical cord clamp.

Verification: The gastroschisis model shows exposed loops with no covering; the omphalocele model shows viscera under a translucent membranous sac.

Phase 3: Finish


Front views of the two finished neonatal mannequins with close-up panels: on the gastroschisis model a bowel loop protrudes beside a clamped umbilical cord, and on the omphalocele model the contents sit inside a yellow membranous sac.
Figure 4 — the finished gastroschisis (upper) and omphalocele (lower) mannequins in the frontal plane, with close-up panels. The frontal view is the one that shows where each defect sits in relation to the umbilicus. Faces are blurred as published. Image by Medeiros GA, Gualberto IJN, da Silva CHND, Diniz AMB, de Santana JBF, Volpe FP, Gadde R, Mazzo A, de Oliveira RC, Sbragia L, BMC Medical Education 2023;23:966; CC BY 4.0.
  1. Apply the cosmetics, which the source lists as about 100 g of talcum powder and 20 ml of fake blood makeup, so the models resemble newborns. The source does not say what each one does.
  2. Use the two finished models together to practise telling the two defects apart.

Verification: The two models are visually distinct — gastroschisis: paraumbilical defect, exposed viscera, no sac; omphalocele: central defect with a covering sac.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Medeiros GA, Gualberto IJN, da Silva CHND, Diniz AMB, de Santana JBF, Volpe FP, Gadde R, Mazzo A, de Oliveira RC, Sbragia L. Development of a low-cost congenital abdominal wall defect simulator (wall-go) for undergraduate medical education: a validation study. BMC Medical Education. 2023;23(1):966. Open access (CC BY 4.0). DOI: 10.1186/s12909-023-04929-3. PMID 38102605.
Simulator data


Page data
Keywords abdominal wall defect, gastroschisis, omphalocele, neonatal simulator, congenital defect, visual diagnosis, locally available materials, WALL-GO, Medeiros, low-cost simulator, TissueDB
SDG
Authors Arturopelayo
License CC-BY-SA-4.0
Language English (en)
Related 0 subpages, 10 pages link here
Redirects TissueDB/Simulators/Medeiros Abdominal Wall Defect Simulator
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Created April 19, 2026 by Arturo Pelayo
Last edit August 17, 2026 by Arturo Pelayo
Cite as Arturopelayo (2026). "TissueDB/Simulators/Abdominal Wall Defect Simulator (Medeiros)". Appropedia. Retrieved August 22, 2026.
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