A Proof of Concept: Optimized Jawbone-Reduction Model for Mandibular Fracture Surgery

Area of Science:

• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
• Biomedical Engineering
• Computer-Aided Surgery

Background:

• Computer-assisted jawbone reduction for mandibular fractures often neglects dental occlusion.
• Overlooking dental articulation can lead to malocclusion post-surgery.
• Existing methods may not achieve both accurate bone reduction and proper bite alignment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a computer-assisted jawbone reduction model based on dental occlusion.
• To improve surgical outcomes for mandibular fractures by ensuring proper dental articulation.
• To overcome the limitations of current methods that disregard the relationship between the mandible and maxilla.

Main Methods:

• Extraction of dental landmarks and mandibular fracture features.
• Alignment of the maxilla and mandible segments using dental landmarks.
• Swarm-based optimization considering both fracture fitting and dental occlusion.
• Evaluation using 12 subjects with simulated and real mandibular fractures.

Main Results:

• The proposed model achieved accurate jawbone reduction.
• The optimized model successfully ensured desired dental occlusion.
• The method demonstrated superior performance compared to existing techniques in achieving both objectives.
• Validation with both simulated and real mandibular fracture data.

Conclusions:

• The developed model effectively integrates dental occlusion into computer-assisted jawbone reduction.
• This approach offers a more comprehensive solution for mandibular fracture surgery.
• The findings suggest a potential advancement in surgical planning and execution for complex fractures.