▼This page is a material entry for the SELF Tissue Database.
It documents the tissue applications, practical guidance, and related simulators for this material to support low-cost, reproducible surgical simulator development.
Four bottles of liquid food colouring — blue, red, green and yellow — with the coloured liquid visible through the glass
Four bottles of liquid food colouring — blue, red, green and yellow.
License: CC-BY-2.0 by Larry Jacobsen

Ink or dye is a colourant — liquid, gel, powder or paint — used in medical simulation to give a fluid or a model surface a realistic colour; in TissueDB builds, most often red to mimic blood. A dye is mixed into water or saline to make simulated blood, or added to a fluid circuit so that a leak becomes visible. A paint is brushed onto a model to colour anatomy, mark a landmark, or finish a surface. The many named colours, forms and brands are grouped as one material class because the colour is a detail of the same colourant, not a different material.

Tissues

Tissue Visual Tactile Simulator Notes
Blood Peripheral Intravenous Catheterization Trainer, Hemorrhage Control Simulator (Malik), Synthetic Tourniquet Training Model (Souza Lima), Suction-Assisted Laryngoscopy and Airway Decontamination Simulator (Kumar), Cricothyrotomy Simulator (Calvo), Cricothyrotomy Simulator (Kei), Intra-abdominal Bleeding Simulator (Fernandes), Massive Hemoptysis Simulator (New), Superficial Temporal Artery-Middle Cerebral Artery Bypass Trainer The Peripheral IV trainer lists optional red food colouring.[1] Malik uses red food colouring with saline or other IV fluid.[2] Calvo and Kei use red-dyed saline.[3][4] Kumar uses red food colouring in water.[5] Souza Lima uses red school paint diluted with water.[6] New adds blue food colouring and corn starch to the red mixture.[7] Fernandes lists five units of food colouring.[8] The STA–MCA trainer uses Rifocin-coloured water.[9]
(Structural — leak-indicator dye, not tissue simulant) Grapefruit dACA Bypass Simulator Red food colouring makes leaks visible in the water circuit.[10]
(Structural — surface finish on a paper-mache model, not tissue simulant) Bronchoscopy Anatomical Trainer (Di Domenico) Water-based enamel finish for the paper-mache airway model.[11]
(Structural — landmark marking and vessel colour-coding, not tissue simulant) Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernia Repair Simulator (Hanssen) White paint identifies the Cooper’s-ligament landmark; blue and red paint distinguish the iliac-vessel stand-ins.[12]
(Structural — anatomical colouring of a 3D-printed model, not tissue simulant) Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernioplasty TAPP 3D Simulator (Pires de Melo Filho) Gouache ink in anatomy-book colours for the printed male pelvis.[13]
Application role not specified in source Abdominal Wall Defect Simulator (Medeiros) Fake blood makeup; 20 mL is listed for the two-model build. The exact application site and amount per model are unspecified. Reviewers noted possible confusion with bowel damage; removal was suggested for a future version.[14]
(Structural — colouring cast plastisol sheets, not tissue simulant) Emergency Department Thoracotomy Simulator (Misra) Colourant for plastisol skin and fat sheets, listed as two 4 oz packs. The build yields ten pairs of sheets; no colourant mixing ratio is given.[15]
(Structural — pigmenting cast silicone, not tissue simulant) Injection Laryngoplasty Simulator (Lee), Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy Simulator (Casas-Murillo) Lee uses Silc-Pig PMS 7421C and 488C in Ecoflex 00-20 for a pink endolarynx.[16] Casas-Murillo uses colourant in P53 silicone for the gallbladder and bile ducts; the figure caption shows green dye, without a brand or colour code.[17]
(Structural — colouring the cast gelatin block, not tissue simulant) Patent Ductus Arteriosus Ligation Simulator Powdered red pigment colours the gelatin model.[18]
(Structural — opacifying a gelatin phantom for blinded training, not tissue simulant) Pediatric Forearm Fracture Simulator Food colouring makes the gelatin phantom opaque for blinded training; the unblinded version stays transparent.[19]
(Structural — colourant listed among assembly materials) Pediatric Inguinal Hernia Repair Simulator (Heo) The source lists Rit Dye in yellow, tangerine and cherry red among the purchased assembly materials; it does not assign these dyes to particular components or give a mixing amount.[20]
Vomit Suction-Assisted Laryngoscopy and Airway Decontamination Simulator (Kumar) Green food colouring in water represents vomit.[5]
Vessel-wall stain (methylene blue) Superficial Temporal Artery-Middle Cerebral Artery Bypass Trainer Methylene blue highlights the vessel wall at the vessel ends.[9]
(Structural — colouring the bowel stand-in, not tissue simulant) Trocar Placement Simulator Red lipstick colours the balloon used as the bowel stand-in.[21]
(Structural — colouring gelatin tissue layers, not tissue simulant) Z-Plasty Simulator Red food colouring for muscle, yellow for fat, and pink/white/yellow for skin; amounts vary with the desired skin tone. The connective-tissue paste contains no colouring.[22]
(Structural — drawing muscle-fibre striations on the batting muscle layers, not tissue simulant) Open Appendectomy Simulator (Matthews) Red marker distinguishes the perpendicular fibre directions of the two cotton-batting muscle layers. Reviewer feedback requested more colour and larger stripes.[23]








References

  1. ↑ Stephanie McKee. "Caboodle Noodle 2.0." NLN SIRC HomeGrown Solutions, Solution 394. NLN source.
  2. ↑ Malik OAA, Chhapra R. An Inexpensive model to teach hemorrhage control in resource limited settings. Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(3):916–918. DOI: 10.12669/pjms.37.3.3517. PMID: 34104189.
  3. ↑ Calvo A, Ibañez Esteve C, Varela V, Gomez-Lopez L, Perdomo JM, Berge R, Gomar Sancho C. Design, application and evaluation of a cricothyrotomy model for a multidisciplinary simulation. An observational single centre study. Educación Médica 2021;22:305–310. DOI: 10.1016/j.edumed.2020.12.003.
  4. ↑ Kei J, Mebust DP, Duggan LV. The REAL CRIC Trainer: Instructions for Building an Inexpensive, Realistic Cricothyrotomy Simulator with Skin and Tissue, Bleeding, and Flash of Air. Journal of Emergency Medicine 2019;56(4):426–430. DOI: 10.1016/j.jemermed.2018.12.023. PMID: 30685221.
  5. 1 2 Kumar R, Kumar R. An Indigenous Suction-assisted Laryngoscopy and Airway Decontamination Simulation System. Indian Journal of Critical Care Medicine 2024;28(7):702–705. DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10071-24760. PMID: 38994267. PMC: PMC11234124. License: CC BY-NC 4.0.
  6. ↑ Souza Lima D, Almeida YADS, Cid DMC, Cardoso LC, Braga CS, Regis FGL. Low-cost synthetic tourniquet training model. Rev Col Bras Cir. 2019;46(6):e20192324. DOI 10.1590/0100-6991e-20192324. PMID 31967244.
  7. ↑ New ML, Amass T, Neumeier A, Jacobson NM, Huie TJ. Creation and validation of a massive hemoptysis simulator. Chest 2024;165(3):636–644. DOI: 10.1016/j.chest.2023.10.014. PMID 37852436.
  8. ↑ Fernandes CO, Rodrigues LR, Silva do Amaral MLBS, de Morais Rodrigues SJ, Marton-Filho MA. Low-cost simulator for intra-abdominal bleeding. Rev Col Bras Cir 2023;50:e20233512. DOI: 10.1590/0100-6991e-20233512-en. PMID: 37971114. PMC: PMC10618030.
  9. 1 2 Akdag BA, Akdag B, Ikizoglu E, Husemoglu B, Kizmazoglu C, Aydin HE, Ozer E. "A Novel Training Model for Superficial Temporal Artery- Middle Cerebral Artery Anastomosis Using Microsurgical Techniques." World Neurosurgery. 2024;190:e665–e674. DOI 10.1016/j.wneu.2024.07.200. PMID 39098505.
  10. ↑ Cikla U, Rowley P, Jennings Simoes EL, Ozaydin B, Goodman SL, Avci E, Baskaya MK, Patel NJ. Grapefruit Training Model for Distal Anterior Cerebral Artery Side-to-Side Bypass. World Neurosurgery 2020;138:39–51. DOI 10.1016/j.wneu.2020.02.107. PMID 32109640.
  11. ↑ Di Domenico S, Simonassi C, Chessa L. Inexpensive anatomical trainer for bronchoscopy. Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery 2007;6(4):567–569. DOI 10.1510/icvts.2007.153601. PMID 17669940.
  12. ↑ Hanssen A, Hanssen DA, Hanssen RA, Plotnikov S, Haddad J, Daes JE. Implementation and Validation of a Novel and Inexpensive Training Model for Laparoscopic Inguinal Hernia Repair. J Abdom Wall Surg 2022;1:10305. DOI 10.3389/jaws.2022.10305. CC BY 4.0.
  13. ↑ Pires de Melo Filho L, Mano Almeida A, Marçal de Barros Filho E, de Oliveira Borges GC. Simulated training model in a low cost for laparoscopic inguinal hernioplasty. Acta Cir Bras. 2021;36(1):e360108. doi:10.1590/ACB360108. CC BY 4.0.
  14. ↑ 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.
  15. ↑ Misra A, Chapman A, Watson WD, Bach JA, Bonta MJ, Elliott JO, Dominguez EP (2024). "Use of Low-Cost Task Trainer for Emergency Department Thoracotomy Training in General Surgery Residency Program." Journal of Surgical Education 81(1):134–144. DOI: 10.1016/j.jsurg.2023.09.009. PMID: 37926660. © 2023 Association of Program Directors in Surgery, published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
  16. ↑ Lee M, Ang C, Andreadis K, Shin J, Rameau A. An open-source three-dimensionally printed laryngeal model for injection laryngoplasty training. Laryngoscope 2021;131(3):E890–E895. DOI: 10.1002/lary.28952. PMID: 32750164.
  17. ↑ Casas-Murillo C, Zuñiga-Ruiz A, Lopez-Barron RE, Sanchez-Uresti A, Gogeascoechea-Hernandez A, Muñoz-Maldonado GE, Salinas-Chapa M, Elizondo-Riojas G, Negreros-Osuna AA. 3D-printed anatomical models of the cystic duct and its variants, a low-cost solution for an in-house built simulator for laparoscopic surgery training. Surgical and Radiologic Anatomy 2021;43(4):537–544. DOI 10.1007/s00276-020-02631-3. PMID 33386458.
  18. ↑ Cardiac Surgical Skills Training Module, SELF-Training team / Global Surgical Training Challenge, Appropedia, 2021. Build and operation: Phase 2 (Simulator Setup), Phase 3 (Skills Practice) and Phase 4 (Self-Assessment).
  19. ↑ Pediatric Distal Forearm Fractures/Pediatric Forearm Simulators, Appropedia.
  20. ↑ Heo K, Greaney E, Haehl J, Stunden C, Lindner A, Malik PRA, Rosenbaum DG, Muensterer O, Zakani S, Jacob J, Joharifard S. Iterative Design and Manufacturing of a 3D-Printed Pediatric Open and Laparoscopic Integrated Simulator for Hernia Repair (POLISHeR). Journal of Pediatric Surgery 2025;60:162232. DOI 10.1016/j.jpedsurg.2025.162232 PMID 40011165. CC BY-NC 4.0.
  21. ↑ ALL-SAFE Consortium. ALL-SAFE Trocar Placement Simulation Build Instructions. Pan-African Academy of Christian Surgeons, University of Michigan, Southern Illinois University, Soddo Christian Hospital, AIC Kijabe Hospital, Mbingo Baptist Hospital. Available at: PDF.
  22. ↑ AmoSmile Physical Simulator. AmoSmile team, Appropedia.
  23. ↑ Matthews J, Bhatia MB, Thomas C, Okoth P, Martinez CR, Levy JS, Stefanidis D, Hunter-Squires JL, Saruni SI (2022). "AMPATH surgical app: Low-cost simulator for the open appendectomy." Surgery 172(6):1656–1664. DOI: 10.1016/j.surg.2022.07.023. PMID: 36123174. © 2022 Elsevier Inc.
Page data
Keywords ink, dye, food colouring, food coloring, black ink, red dye, green dye, red food coloring, green food coloring, colourant, simulated blood, leak indicator, TissueDB
Authors Arturopelayo
License CC-BY-SA-4.0
Language English (en)
Translations Chinese
Related 1 subpages, 30 pages link here
Redirects TissueDB/Materials/Black Ink, TissueDB/Materials/Food Colouring, TissueDB/Materials/Red Dye, TissueDB/Materials/Green Dye, TissueDB/Materials/Red Food Coloring, TissueDB/Materials/Green Food Coloring, TissueDB/Materials/Food Coloring, TissueDB/Materials/Green dye, TissueDB/Materials/Red dye, TissueDB/Materials/Paint
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Created July 3, 2026 by Arturo Pelayo
Last edit September 21, 2026 by Arturo Pelayo
Cite as Arturopelayo (2026). "TissueDB/Materials/Ink or Dye". Appropedia. Retrieved September 29, 2026.
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