ABSTRACT
Computer-assisted medical imaging has shown tremendous improvements in definition of in vivo anatomy of patients with craniofacial anomalies. In accordance with developments of simulation surgery, preoperative surgical simulation can now be performed more accurately and interactively within the environment of computer graphic workstation and can also provide the best solution for surgery by displaying the 3 dimensional simulation images. The interactive surgical simulation approach is based on digitally osteotomized objects which have been translocated manually by an operator who visually determines the amount of movement required until the desired end result is achieved. However, this approach depends upon subjective assessment and may not consistently provide optimal simulation in all directions due to manual movement of the osteotomized object by mouse or trackball. In addition, this procedure is time and labor intensive due to repetitive processing to obtain a satisfactory end result. This study demonstrates a method of surface matching of digitally osteotomized objects, by simulating the deformed orbit to the assumed ideal position of mirror image without manual manipulation of simulation objects. This process can move the osteotomized object to the preset end results-mirror image- automatically by computer module. The single processing of the osteotomized segment changes the position of simulated segments with certainty. This procedure allows more accurate and reliable result of simulation surgery. However, it will be valuable only when one can determine the ideal end results such as mirror image of this article as a normal template.