Three-dimensional printing of patient-specific surgical plates in head and neck reconstruction: A prospective pilot study

Tumor ablation leads to head and neck defects, which brings about significant aesthetic and functional deficits. Surgical plates have been extensively used in head and neck reconstruction to stabilize bone segments since the twentieth century. Conventionally surgical plates are mass-produced with universal configurations that should be manually bended to match the individual bone anatomy. The plate bending procedure could be time- and energy-consuming, especially for inexperienced surgeons [1]. In order to achieve the desired contour in some complicated cases, surgical plates need to be bended repeatedly, which induces internal stress concentration.
Source: Oral Oncology - Category: Cancer & Oncology Authors: Source Type: research