SensAble’s FreeForm Enables Virtual Surgical Planning For LEAP Foundation’s Groundbreaking Facial Transformation of 5-Year Old Boy

WOBURN, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--SensAble Technologies, a leader in 3D modeling solutions and haptic devices, announced that its customer, MedCAD, a digital medical modeling service bureau in Dallas TX, helped doctors at the LEAP Foundation of Dallas rehearse a complex facial reconstruction surgery virtually, on a common laptop,, for a 5-year old boy with hypertelorism, a congenital misalignment of the face involving a cleft nose, skull and palate. Thanks to MedCAD’s ability to render 3D models of complex surgical options and then digitally design custom surgical guides on a 3D printer, Dr. Craig Hobar, co-founder and chief surgeon of the LEAP Foundation, was able to plan the complex 7-hour surgery with heightened speed and precision. The surgery was successful and placed the young Chinese orphan on a pathway to a restored appearance that accompanied his new life in an adoptive home in the United States.

“We are seeing more requests for this service, and with FreeForm, we can move swiftly from CT scan file to full 3D model, and help surgeons increase the speed, precision and sophistication of their surgical planning.”

The case highlights the expanded use of virtual surgical planning, as a new generation of surgeon emerges with greater computer savvy, and specialized 3D modeling solutions better accommodate the difficult task of digitally modeling human anatomy and producing 3D study models and specialized tools. Craniofacial surgeries are implicitly complex, with organically shaped and irregular bones whose new shape or location could impact sensitive brain and head structures. In the past surgeons relied on hand-made clay or wax models of a patient’s anatomy to guide them on how and where to cut – models that took weeks to create, required more time to modify, and could not take advantage of the digital accuracy of patient-specific images such as CT scans.

Today, service bureaus like MedCAD can import CT scans directly into SensAble’s FreeForm 3D touch-enabled modeling system, create a 3D model that shows the possible ways facial or cranial defects can be corrected – then create a movie of it and send it via email to physicians anywhere in the world. Surgeons can ask “What if?” and explore all surgical options instantly, in real time, from the convenience of a common PC – well ahead of the patient’s surgery. If surgical guides are needed to allow proper instrument positioning, they can be designed digitally – far faster and more precisely –from the virtual 3D model.

“The speed of the virtual planning with the FreeForm software that MedCAD uses was just amazing,” said Dr. Craig Hobar, chief surgeon of the Dallas-based LEAP Foundation.

“By importing the child’s CT scans, we were able to create a 3D model that allowed us to see all the bones in the face that would be affected in this surgery. I could explore all my surgical options on the computer, and iterate on them over and over until I found one that was just right. And we could easily produce a custom surgical cutting guide that perfectly matched this young patient’s measurements, which aided us during surgery. For complex cases, virtual surgical planning like this is an extremely valuable technique.”

MedCAD created 3D computer models that showed the location of incisions that created two bony sections, one on either side of the face, that the surgical team would realign closer together around the nose and palate to support a more normal appearance. Using FreeForm, MedCAD could show Dr. Hobar the impact of rotating one of the bony sections in a particular direction, and how it might then interfere with another structure elsewhere in the back and side of the head. He and other surgeons could then virtually adjust the amount of downward movement of that section, or explore other surgical options such as relocating the incisions. After a proposed model was complete, a QuickTime animation was then emailed back and forth among colleagues for their viewing and approval.

Once the team finalized a surgical approach, MedCAD used FreeForm to digitally design custom surgical cutting guides to support the placement of instruments in precisely the right locations, using the patient’s own measurements – instead of manually creating guides to approximate the fit. The surgery, performed in December 2009, was successful and the resulting bone structure provided an ample foundation for the reconstruction.

“Visualizing complex surgery is far easier when surgeons have a 3D model they can tweak and manipulate in real-time,” said Nancy Hairston, president of MedCAD. “We are seeing more requests for this service, and with FreeForm, we can move swiftly from CT scan file to full 3D model, and help surgeons increase the speed, precision and sophistication of their surgical planning.”

“Our FreeForm Modeling System has been helping medical professionals make study models and visualize surgical options for years, but being able to ‘print’ custom surgical guides in biocompatible materials quickly and inexpensively is an exciting new application,” said Joan Lockhart, vice president of marketing at SensAble. “It is gratifying to see our technology used in such humanitarian ways – truly making a difference in the life of this brave young child. Our thanks go out to the entire team that has given him a new face for his new life.”

About the LEAP Foundation

The LEAP Foundation (Life Enhancement Association for People) is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to enhancing and enriching the lives of people around the world by providing specialized medical services in the name of Christ. LEAP is comprised of volunteer plastic surgeons, urologists, eye surgeons, anesthesiologists, orthodontists, nurses and support staff. Dedicating time, expertise and often their own resources, these volunteers endeavor to bring free surgical care to children and adults born with deformities. To date LEAP has provided life-giving surgeries for over 6,000 individuals worldwide.

About MedCAD

Based in Dallas, Texas, MedCAD is a design firm specializing in development of custom medical products and virtual surgical planning. It is a division of VanDuzen Inc., a rapid digital solutions company offering for “Time Compression Solutions for Design and Manufacturing.” VanDuzen has two other divisions: SculptCAD and Vouch Software. For more information, visit www.medicalcad.com.

About SensAble Technologies

Founded in 1993, SensAble Technologies is the leading developer of 3D touch-enabled (force feedback) solutions and technology that allow users to not only see and hear an on-screen computer application, but to actually “feel” it. With 41 patents granted and over 8,000 systems installed worldwide, SensAble Technologies' haptic technology is being used in applications ranging from designing toys and footwear, to surgical simulation and stroke rehabilitation, to dental restorations, as well as a range of research and robotic applications. The company markets its own 3D modeling solutions as well as its haptic devices and developer toolkits to medical, dental, design, and manufacturing companies; educational and research institutions; and OEMs. SensAble products are available through direct and reseller channels worldwide. www.sensable.com.

FreeForm, SensAble, and SensAble Technologies, Inc. are trademarks or registered trademarks of SensAble Technologies, Inc. Other brand and product names are trademarks of their respective holders.