April 1, 2014
UK surgeons rebuilt a man's face after he fell four storeys onto a concrete roof.
Jon Fenton (27) was on holiday in Barcelona last summer with fiance Rachel West when he slipped and fell four storeys from a hotel balcony.
Jon Fenton and fiance Rachel (before the accident)
Jon Fenton today
All bones in his face and all four limbs were broken. He has surgery on kneecaps, femur and hip in Spain and stayed there for six weeks before he was flown back to Britain the following month. He needed to learn how to walk again and have face construction surgery.
Surgeons in the maxillofacial department of Queen's Medical Centre used a 3D printer to create a model of Mr Fenton's skull.
During a 14-hour operation, surgeons re-broke and re-set almost every bone in his face into the correct position trying to rebuild his features to how it was before the fall.
Daren Forward, who is consultant in orthopaedic trauma at the QMC, said: "He basically broke everything. Jon's case was pretty much up there with as bad as it gets. All four limbs were severely broken.
"His face almost acted as a crumple zone for his head, but it meant that his brain wasn't seriously injured and his chest and abdomen weren't seriously injured. You need to be on the fifth floor or above for 50 per cent of people to die – the body is a pretty amazing thing."
The before and after cast of Jon Fenton's skull.
The 3D printed model gives the surgeons the exact view of the injury. "From there we can plan things and get ready to operate." said Dr Dilip Srinivasan who oversaw the process.
'It's complex but it's about planning well."
"The biggest reward is when patients say they are happy."
Jon is now looking forward to a bright future and planning his wedding.
"They've literally given me my life back," he said. He still needs to work with doctors for another 18 months of intense physiotherapy to help him walk and regain full movement of his facial muscles.
His fiance Rachel said:"'Six months ago everything was looking really bad but his face operation has gone so well and he looks so much better.
'It's been a long year but it does feel as though there's light at the end of the tunnel."
Source: DailyMail & NottinghamPost
Posted in 3D Printing Applications
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