Model to Estimate Threshold Mechanical Stability of Lower Lateral Cartilage

Estimation of Nasal Tip Support Using Computer-Aided Design and 3-Dimensional Printed Models

“…This study extends the work of Kim et al 23 used for evaluating lower lateral cartilage adequacy and applies the same method to the entire nose. Evaluating nasal tip support in vivo is extremely difficult because the investigator must have multiple patients in a setting where a large group of surgeons could examine them quickly.…”

“…23,24 This approach also provides a link between experimental measurements or modeling and the rhinoplasty surgeon’s evaluation of nasal tip support. The force or recoil to palpation that surgeons perceive is difficult to quantify.…”

“…14 The linkage between physician assessment and outcomes derived from FEA can be established using this 3-D–printed rapid prototype approach. 23 This process opens the possibilities for preoperative detailed computational analysis of the nose before surgery. Recent studies have used computational fluid dynamics to perform virtual simulations on digital 3-D renderings of the nose designed from clinical CT scans.…”

“…The first medical application for 3-D–printed prototypes was demonstrated in the construction of common dental implants. 22 In rhinoplasty, Kim et al 23 reported the feasibility of 3-D printing to create lower lateral cartilage models with different mechanical properties that could be evaluated by a focus group of surgeons prompted to identify the ideal cartilage stiffness. This focus group method has also been used to identify ideal mechanical properties (eg, stiffness) for columellar, lateral crural strut, and L-strut replacement grafts.…”

“…This focus group method has also been used to identify ideal mechanical properties (eg, stiffness) for columellar, lateral crural strut, and L-strut replacement grafts. 23,24 …”