Category: plastic surgery case study | skull reshaping

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Hydroxyapatite Granule Skull Reconstruction for Traumatic Partial-Thickness Skull Defect

Background: The skull, while often perceived as a solid piece of bone, is not. It is actually composed of three layers, very much like an Oreo cookie. There are the outer and inner solid cortical layers (the cookie) and then there is a thinner inner layer which is softer known as the diploid or marrow Read More…

OR Snapshots – Sagittal Crest Skull Reduction

A bony ridge that runs down the midline of the head is known as a sagittal crest. This is a palpable raised ridge of bone that when high enough can cause a peak-shape to the head from the front view. The normal more convex shape off the head becomes more triangular shaped. This is most Read More…

OR Snapshots – Custom Occipital Skull Implant for the Flat Back of the Head

There are over fifteen types of aesthetic skull deformities. But the most common amongst them is various forms of flattening of the back of head. Perhaps because the back of head is exposed to various pressures in utero and after birth more than any other area of the head, it is prone to deformational pressures Read More…

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Posterior Sagittal Crest Reduction Through a Limited Scalp Incision

Background: The sagittal suture is the fibrous connection between the two parietal skull bones running down the midline of the head. It remains as a soft tissue connection until the second or third decide of life when it closes and disappears. Premature closure of the suture in utero or early after birth results in the Read More…

Custom Skull Implant Design for Occipital Plagiocephaly Correction

Flattening of the back of the head is one of the most common aesthetic skull deformities. It can occur either as a total or bilateral flattening of the back of the head (occipital brachycephaly) or on just one side. (occipital plagiocephaly) The actual occurrences of either type of occipital skull deformity is not known and Read More…

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Secondary Custom Skull Implant Replacement for Greater Volume

Background: Various forms of skull augmentation have become a common procedure in my practice. From flatness on the back of the head, a narrow head width, the desire for greater skull height and shape to a more projecting forehead and/or brows, custom skull implants can more than adequately meet these needs with a safe and Read More…

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Fibro-Osseous Occipital Knob Reduction

Background: The back of the head is usually a smooth convex shape. While the amount of convexity will vary amongst different people, protrusions on its outer surface are not usually seen as aesthetically desirable. Thus the discrete occipital knob deformity stands out. The occipital knob deformity is a well known central bony protrusion just above Read More…

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Sagittal Skull Reshaping with Sagittal Crest Reduction and Custom Skull Implant

Background: There are many different varieties of aesthetic skull shape issues in the adult. While most are from congenital issues related to head molding and are more ‘minor’ in the severity of their expression, some are from variations of true skull pathologies known as crniosynostosis. This is where the sutures that exist between the plates Read More…

OR Snapshots – Titanium Mesh Skull Implant for Defect Coverage

Reconstruction of the skull can be done using a variety of alloplastic materials. Over the years synthetic cranioplasties have evolved from solid metal plates to bone cements to computer-generated implant replacements of lost bone. While some techniques are most historic than others, each still has a role to play in contemporary cranioplasty surgery. When there Read More…

Plastic Surgery Case Study – Custom Skull Implant Replacement for Greater Crown Augmentation

Background: The use of custom skull implants for a wide variety of aesthetic head shape concerns has proven to be a a successful treatment strategy. Using a computer design process on the patient’s 3D CT of their skull, the surface area coverage and thickness of the implant can be precisely made. Such designs must take Read More…