Jehad Al-Sukhun and Heikki Penttila
The purpose of this paper was to share our clinical experience on the use of pre-adapted / fabricated plates using stereolithography for accurate repair of maxillofacial defects. We present five cases where pre-adapted / fabricated plates were either used to reconstruct defects following tumour resection or for secondary reconstructions of maxillofacial trauma. Our opinion concerning Stereolithography Models (SMs) is that they probably do not offer the surgeon relevant diagnostics information, but they are very useful in the surgical planning of any maxillofacial operation. SMs allow direct simulation of osteotomies, grafts and the measurement of bone movements. Prefabricated/ adapted plates combined with SMs reduce intra-operative time and morbidity, increase accuracy of the surgical reconstruction and minimize complications and surgeons’ stress. However, these technologies are expensive. Therefore, considering their cost, we see indications in secondary corrections of the maxillofacial trauma and tumour reconstruction.