Finite element method for the design of implants for temporal hollowing

Federica Ruggiero; David Dunaway; Curtis Budden; Luke Smith; Noor Ul Owase Jeelani; Silvia Schievano; Juling Ong; Alessandro Borghi

doi:10.1016/j.jpra.2021.12.001

Finite element method for the design of implants for temporal hollowing

JPRAS Open. 2021 Dec 18:32:18-23. doi: 10.1016/j.jpra.2021.12.001. eCollection 2022 Jun.

Authors

Federica Ruggiero^{1

2}, David Dunaway^{2

3}, Curtis Budden², Luke Smith², Noor Ul Owase Jeelani^{2

3}, Silvia Schievano^{2

3}, Juling Ong^{2

3}, Alessandro Borghi^{2

3}

Affiliations

¹ DIBINEM Alma Mater Studiorum University of Bologna, Bologna, Italia.
² Craniofacial Unit, Great Ormond Street Hospital, London WC1N 1JH (UK).
³ Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London WC1N 1EH (UK).

Abstract

Temporal indentations are the most impacting craniofacial complication after coronal flap dissection. It is mainly due to a temporal fat pad or temporalis muscle dissection. Because of the great improvements achieved recently in CAD-CAM-aided surgery and the possibility of performing accurate pre-surgical virtual planning, it is now possible to correct it with a customised virtual approach. Furthermore, advancements in material science have allowed surgeons to rely on biocompatible materials like PEEK (showing a low complication and recurrence rate) for the manufacturing of patient-specific implants. We hereby describe our experience on a case of secondary and corrective surgery after a fronto-orbital remodelling, in which we used PEEK implants designed by CAD and optimized by finite element modelling.

Keywords: Craniofacial surgery; Finite element modelling; Temporal hollowing; Trigonocephaly.

Publication types

Case Reports