抄録
An orthognathic surgical simulation system that integrates morphological data onteeth, jaws, and faces into a coordinate system with a computer, was developed.
Morphological data on the upper teeth and the facial surfaces were obtained from laser scanners. All the data were integrated in the reference coordinate system of frontal and lateral cephalograms.
A technique used for this integration was to match the data of teeth and faces to a pair of cephalograms on a computer. This method (projection matching technique) is especially useful for the integration of objects that have a difficulty to pick up anatomical landmarks because of their spherish shape, like facial surfaces.
The patient's mandibular shape was simulated in the computer by transforming a generic model to match the patient's cephalograms. Thus, various designs of mandibular osteotomies can be simulated on the computer without using CT data. The movement of bone and collisions between segments that might be caused with each operation method can be analyzed. This system will be useful for selection of an operative method, especiallyone aimed at considering facial soft tissue shape changes.
