Three-dimensional printing for restoration of the donor face: A new digital technique tested and used in the first facial allotransplantation patient in Finland.

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Three-dimensional printing for restoration of the donor face: A new digital technique tested and used in the first facial allotransplantation patient in Finland.

J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2016 Oct 5;:

Authors: Mäkitie AA, Salmi M, Lindford A, Tuomi J, Lassus P

Abstract
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Prosthetic mask restoration of the donor face is essential in current facial transplant protocols. The aim was to develop a new three-dimensional (3D) printing (additive manufacturing; AM) process for the production of a donor face mask that fulfilled the requirements for facial restoration after facial harvest.
MATERIALS AND METHODS: A digital image of a single test person's face was obtained in a standardized setting and subjected to three different image processing techniques. These data were used for the 3D modeling and printing of a donor face mask. The process was also tested in a cadaver setting and ultimately used clinically in a donor patient after facial allograft harvest.
RESULTS: and Conclusions: All the three developed and tested techniques enabled the 3D printing of a custom-made face mask in a timely manner that is almost an exact replica of the donor patient's face. This technique was successfully used in a facial allotransplantation donor patient.

PMID: 27789209 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

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