Application of an open position splint integrated with a reference frame and registration markers for mandibular navigation surgery.

ABSTRACT

Navigation surgery plays an important role in modern craniomaxillofacial surgery, but it is difficult to apply navigation surgery to the mandible, due to its mobility. At present, headbands or headpins are widely used for fixation of the reference frame, and three strategies are generally used for the application of navigation surgery to the mandible. This article reports the application of a novel open position splint integrated with a reference frame and registration markers for mandibular navigation surgery as a fourth strategy. Using this custom-made integrated splint, a marker-based pair-point registration procedure was completed easily and non-invasively. Furthermore, the neurovascular canal tract could be easily identified, and the cyst, as well as the surrounding daughter cysts, could be removed with high accuracy. This strategy has potential for widespread clinical application in mandibular navigation surgery.