Virtual Resection and Subsequent Design of a Patient-Specific Alloplastic Implant in the Preoperative Planning and Surgical Treatment of a Venous Malformation of the Zygoma.

The authors present here the case of a 63-year-old female who developed a venous malformation of the left zygoma. These lesions are typically managed with nonoperative treatment, until or unless overt complicating symptoms require more aggressive surgical intervention. Reconstruction of the zygoma represents a challenge for the operating surgeon, considering its complex three-dimensional anatomy. Traditionally, the surgeon would estimate the appropriate margins of resection intraoperatively, and then design a construct to fit the defect using autologous bone grafts, allografts, or one of the various available alloplastic materials; however, for this patient preoperative virtual surgical planning was used. Using reconstructed three-dimensional images from the patient's maxillofacial computed tomography scan, the margins of the excision were virtually defined and the lesion "excised" during a preoperative planning session based on the specifications of the reconstructive surgeon. This process then allowed the design and production of custom osteotomy guides, and a patient-specific polyetheretherketone (PEEK) implant to match the resulting defect. The authors believe this methodology allows for a more efficient and precise overall procedural experience and reconstructive result, and has innumerable potential applications in the surgical treatment of craniofacial abnormality.