title: V-tunnel drill system in craniofacial surgery: a new technique for anchoring the detached temporalis muscle.
abstract: A new method for internal fixation of the temporalis muscle in craniofacial surgery has been developed using the V-tunnel drill system, which eliminates the necessity for pins and screws to resuspend the detached temporalis muscle. This system consists of a conventional drill and a specially designed V-tunnel guide. The guide is used to drill multiple series of double-stitching holes, which connect to form a V-shaped tunnel in the external table. The PDS suture is pulled through the V-tunnel, thereby securely anchoring the temporalis muscle to the bone by consecutive stitches. The sutures can be easily positioned after drilling the tunnel and stitched through the V without endangering the cerebrum. This versatile V-tunnel drill procedure is very easy and simple and has many foreseeable applications.
authors.affiliation: Craniofacial and Plastic Surgery Department, Medical School and University Hospital, Goettingen, Germany.
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Hönig
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D012886:Skull / Q000601:surgery*; D013536:Suture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013703:Temporal Muscle / Q000601:surgery*