Virtual Planning and Intraoperative Navigation in Craniomaxillofacial Surgery

Surgery planning assisted by computer represents one important example of the collaboration between surgeons and engineers. Virtual planning allows surgeons to pre-do the surgery by working over a virtual 3D model of the patient obtained through a computer tomography. Through surgical navigation, surgeons are helped while working with deep structures and can check if they are following accurately the surgical plan. These assistive tools are crucial in the field of facial reconstructive surgery. This paper describes two cases, one related to orbital fractures and another one related to oncological patients, showing the advantages that these tools provide, specifically when used for craniomaxillofacial surgery.