Personalized Bioactive Nasal Supports for Postoperative Cleft Rhinoplasty

Publication date: Available online 28 March 2018
Source:Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
Author(s): Christen J. Boyer, Jennifer E. Woerner, Christopher Galea, Corbin A. Gatlin, Ghali E. Ghali, David K. Mills, Jeffery A. Weisman, Jonathan S. Alexander
PurposeIn cleft lip and palate surgeries patients often need nostril supports to help the reconstructed nostrils retain their shape during healing. Many postoperative nasal stents employ a 'one-size fits all' approach, where a standard rubber tube retainer is trimmed and used to support the healing nares. The purpose of this study was to examine photogrammetry and three-dimensional (3D) printing as a fabrication tool for post-operative patient-specific nasal supports that can be loaded with bioactive agents for localized delivery.Materials and MethodsA 'normal' right nostril injection mold was prepared from a left-sided unilateral cleft defect and the negative-space impression was modeled using a series of photos taken at different rotation angles with a commercial mobile phone camera. These images were 'stitched' together using photogrammetry software and the computer-generated models were 'reflected', joined, and digitally sculpted to generate hollow bilateral supports. 3D prints were coated with polyvinylpyrrolidone-penicillin and validated for their ability to inhibit Escherichia coli using human blood agar diffusion assays.ResultsResults showed that this approach has a high level of contour replication and the antibiotic coating was able to inhibit bacterial growths with a mean zone of inhibition of 15.15 ± 0.99 mm (n=9) (P<0.0001) in disc diffusion assays.ConclusionConsumer-grade 3D printing displays potential as a fabrication method for postoperative cleft bilateral nasal supports and may support the surgically reconstructed internal contours. The results of the present study suggest that such types of bioactive 3D prints may have potential applications in personalized drug-delivery systems and medical devices.



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