Abstract

Objectives: - Paradigm change and the concept of 3D surgery. - Analysis of the new technologies available today. Advantages, disadvantages, and indications: pre-surgical planning, intraoperative navigation, surface scanner, 3D printing, guided surgery: cutting and positioning guides. - Case reports and practical applications. - Future: What can we expect? Introduction: The concept of 3D surgery is becoming more present in our daily practice. It consists of the application of 3D technology to surgery. The application of the new technologies opens the door to a paradigm change in surgery: surgery is planned in advance and we can take this plan to the operating room to operate with a very high level of precision and safety, which leads to better results and greater satisfaction for our patients. These advantages are especially noticeable in surgery of the facial region where the precision required is very high in all cases. Materials / method: The different techniques applicable to facial region surgery are reviewed: - 3D surgery: concept, possibilities and advantages. - Pre-surgical planning: process and steps. - Intraoperative navigation: possibilities and requirements. - Surface scanner: the best tool for soft tissue evaluation. - 3D printing: printing of biomodels for diagnosis and planning. In-house printing of surgical guides for cutting and positioning. All the uses and applications are based on the daily clinical experience of the author and, in addition, a bibliographic review of the recent and updated literature. Results: 3D surgery transforms facial procedures in the: Diagnostic Stage: - Advanced facial analysis through 3D technology. - Anthropometric measurements and volume analysis. - Surgical movement planning and result prediction. - Biomodel printing. Treatment Stage: - Implementation of the surgical plan in the OR. - Guided surgery with cutting and positioning guides. - Intraoperative navigation. Follow-up Stage: - Facilitates pre- and post-treatment comparisons. While the benefits are significant, careful tool selection is crucial to avoid escalating costs and surgical time unnecessarily. Conclusion: The application of new technologies in facial surgery already today allows important advantages in all phases of treatment: diagnostic, therapeutic and follow-up. The main advantages are to increase surgical precision and offer patient customized results, bringing our clinical practice closer to the highest standards of personalized medicine.