Doctors from Jaipur will soon be using 3D printing technology to restore faces in oral cancer patients who have undergone surgery. Cardiologists and neurologists from the same hospital have already been successful in performing surgeries with precision using the 3D printing technology. In most surgeries, the jaw bone is removed and if required some flesh chunks, which disfigures the face significantly. In such a case, 3D printing can be advantageous in face reconstruction post-surgery. Surgeons harvest the fibula bone and reconstruct it to fit the jawbone’s position.
This repositioned bone part now acts as the jaw. Using the 3D technique, surgeons can develop a model of the face, that can be used for cosmetic surgeries. Without a 3D model, the doctors have to put in a lot of guesswork in reconstructing the face. Source: Economic Times
