Three-dimensional analysis and treatment planning of hemimandibular hyperplasia.

Introduction: The advent of computed tomography (CT) provided a useful instrument for diagnosis and surgical treatment of patients with craniofacial malformations. The development of software for three-dimensional graphic simulation applied to CT scan has made possible the three-dimensional computerized analysis, surgical planning, and simulation. This kind of analysis is particularly useful in case of complex facial malformations, making reliable a surgical treatment in 1 step. The purpose of this report was to present the diagnosis and treatment planning on a patient with hemimandibular hyperplasia by three-dimensional cephalometric analysis.

Methods: A 20-year-old young woman who presented with hemimandibular hyperplasia was investigated with CT scan and plaster cast mounted on an articulator; a two-dimensional manual and computerized cephalometric analysis was also developed on frontal and lateral cephalograms. Images in DICOM format were processed on a PC by means of commercial software, thus obtaining the three-dimensional reconstruction of the skeletal structures.

Results: Three-dimensional CT permits to program skeletal corrections and to foresee surgical outcomes with adequate realism. Surgical planning based on three-dimensional CT makes it easy and reliable to achieve the correction of the malformation in a single surgical intervention.

Conclusions: The virtual three-dimensional CT model, a versatile diagnostic aid, has proven to be effective in the exact reproduction of bone and soft tissue anatomy, thus helping in the diagnosis, surgical planning, and simulations. Three-dimensional analysis is particularly indicated in case of complex asymmetric malformations, in which the more accurate reproduction of the individual anatomy can be very useful in implementing surgical results.