Fast and Economical Protocol for In-House Virtual Planning and 3D-Printed Surgical Templates in Mandibular Reconstruction

Abstract

In this work, a case series consisting of mandibular reconstruction with free fibula flap in ameloblastic carcinoma, pathological mandibular fracture and recontouring of mandibular angle hyperplasia that were treated successfully using fast and economical in-house virtual planning and 3D-printing protocol has been presented. Pre-operatively, the design of the reconstructed mandibular model and surgical templates were carried out, with the help of two types of free software. As the next step, all designed 3D hardware tools were printed using affordable fused deposition modeling desktop 3D printer. A 3D-printed reconstructed mandibular model was used for titanium plate bending. Our findings have illustrated that it necessitates an average of 5 h 29 min per case from virtual planning stage until the 3D printing of all 3D hardware tools is completed. The average cost for 3D-printed hardware tools and titanium plate per case is only $203.42.

Procedure Increasing the Accuracy of Modelling and the Manufacturing of Surgical Templates with the Use of 3D Printing Techniques, Applied in Planning the Procedures of Reconstruction of the Mandible

“…Methods known from the technical sciences are now successfully used to improve the therapeutic process within the lower face. Models of anatomical structures made with the help of RE/RP techniques facilitate the procedure mainly due to earlier adjustment of the plates or titanium mesh to the model [ 38 , 39 , 40 , 41 ]. However, these stereolithographic models are not able to fully transfer the virtual plan to the real surgery.…”