title: Custom-made cast titanium implants produced with CAD/CAM for the reconstruction of cranium defects.
abstract: Titanium implants for the reconstruction of bony skull defects, using data from three-dimensional spiral computer tomography, have been described by other authors. Instead of milling the implants from a titanium block, an advanced method of rapid prototyping for a fine casting process is presented. Casting vs milling offers several advantages. It is possible to form very thinly tapered structures and to obtain more complex geometrical structures with smaller diameters. Many geometrical forms, which cannot be milled for technical reasons, can be produced using this technique.
authors.affiliation: The Berlin Craniofacial Center, Clinic for Maxillofacial and Plastic Surgery, Virchow-Hospital, Medical Faculty of the Humboldt-University Berlin, Germany. heissler@ukrv.de
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Heissler
authors.forename: F S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bolouri
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Lehmann
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Mathar
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gebhardt
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Lanksch
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bier
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D001860:Bone Plates; D017076:Computer-Aided Design; D006259:Craniocerebral Trauma / Q000601:surgery*; D003399:Craniotomy / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008953:Models, Anatomic; D010347:Patient Care Planning; D011076:Polycarboxylate Cement; D019736:Prostheses and Implants; D013813:Therapy, Computer-Assisted; D014025:Titanium; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011076:Polycarboxylate Cement; C005506:polycarbonate; D014025:Titanium