[Scaphocephaly: mathematical and geometrical principles. Surgical incidences]

Authors have reported the mathematical and geometrical principles of cranioplasty used for the surgical treatment of patients with scaphocephaly. After a review of classical mathematical procedures utilized to modify the surface of spherical or hemispherical structures, and after some considerations about relevant properties of bone, the authors illustrate the possibility of a clinical application. The technique described and used in a series of 40 patients, is a simple adaptation of the principles used by engineers to build complex structure such as ships hulls, domes and airfoils. The very satisfactory results obtained, encouraged us to extend the application of the method reports to the reshaping of the skull in other cranio-facial malformations characterized by abnormal skull morphology.