Faculty Bibliography

INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND:Digital simulators are potential solutions to challenges facing surgical education. The authors sought to evaluate the reach and utilization of a freely-accessible craniofacial surgery digital educational simulator. More importantly, we compare usage patterns between web-based and mobile-based platforms. METHODS:A 3-way collaboration between academic, non-profit (myFace, New York, NY), and biotechnology (Biodigital, New York, NY) stakeholders in 2015 produced the Craniofacial Interactive Virtual Assistant Pro (CIVA-Pro). CIVA-Pro is a freely-accessible craniofacial surgery digital educational simulator. In addition to the web-based platform, a mobile-based platform was launched in 2017. Usage analytics were collected and analyzed. RESULTS:Since its launch, 751 registered users from 117 countries had accessed CIVA-Pro. The total number of sessions was 9531, including 7500 web and 2031 mobile sessions. The total screen time was 403.9 hours, 290.3 for the web and 113.6 for the mobile platform. Comparison of the mean monthly screen time and number of monthly sessions between platforms since 2017 demonstrated a significantly higher mean monthly screen time (60.1 ± 33.2 versus 29.4 ± 16.5 hours; P = 0.002) and number of sessions (110.2 ± 36.1 versus 58.1 ± 31.9; P < 0.0001) for the mobile-based platform. The mean screen time per session was comparable (P = 0.86). CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:A freely available digital craniofacial surgery educational simulator designed for surgical trainees can achieve significant global reach. Significantly higher utilization of the mobile-based platform of the simulator as compared to the web-based platform reinforces the need to invest in user-friendly, easily accessible, and widely available digital educational resources by key stakeholders to ensure optimal plastic surgery trainee education.

Pierre Robin sequence is the constellation of micrognathia, glossoptosis, and tongue-based airway obstruction. When airway obstruction is severe, feeding, growth, and respiratory demise are at risk. Neonatal mandibular distraction osteogenesis is a technique which improves tongue-based airway obstruction and avoids tracheostomy in patients with severe expressions of Pierre Robin sequence. Its efficacy in relieving airway obstruction is well documented, and it has become the surgical intervention of choice at many craniofacial centers. However, this is an uncommon procedure which can be performed within the first weeks of life, offering little space for a learning curve. The success of neonatal distraction and avoidance of complications is highly dependent on proper surgical technique. This report provides a brief overview of the disease, details the technique of the senior surgeon with captioned videos, describes the protocol used at our institution and reports long-term outcomes with a case description.

OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:to evaluate the probability of survival and failure modes of lithium-disilicate, feldspathic-ceramic, and resin-nanoceramic anterior veneers cemented on dentin analog substrates after sliding-contact step-stress accelerated life testing (SSALT). METHODS:A virtual incisor tooth preparation was produced with a reduction of 1.5mm at the incisal edge and of 0.7mm buccally. A .STL file of the preparation was generated and CAD/CAM based G10 dentin-analog material was used for testing. Laminate veneers were milled in three different materials: lithium-disilicate (LDS, E.max CAD), resin-nanoceramic (RN, Lava Ultimate), and feldspathic-ceramic (FELDS, Vita Blocks). SSALT was employed where a spherical indenter contacted the veneer, slided along its interface with G10 to lift off and start a new cycle at 2Hz in water. Qualitative fractography was performed. The probability of survival (90% confidence-bounds) was calculated for several load/cycle missions. RESULTS:The probability of survival for a mission of 50,000 cycles decreased from 50 up to 150N equally for all groups and were not different between them. At 200N, the probability of survival was significantly lower for FELDS (10%) compared to RN veneers (41%), whereas LDS presented intermediate values (22%). The characteristic strength of RN (247N) was significantly higher than LDS (149N), and FELDS (151N). In FELDS and LDS, hackles, wake hackles and twist hackles indicated the direction of crack propagation. In RN, hackles were observed. CONCLUSIONS:Differences in probability of survival were observed only at 180 and 200N between groups. Failure modes were similar with veneer fracture down to the tooth-analog substrate.

BACKGROUND:Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) codes are an important part of surgical documentation and billing for services provided within the United States. This limited coding language presents a challenge in the heterogenous and rapidly evolving field of craniofacial surgery. The authors aimed to survey members of the American Society of Maxillofacial Surgery (ASMS) to characterize the variability in coding practices in the surgical management of craniofacial trauma. METHODS:A cross-sectional of 500 members of the ASMS survey was carried out. Descriptive statistics were calculated. The effect of various practice characteristics on coding practices was evaluated using Chi-squared tests and Fisher's exact tests. RESULTS:In total, 79 participants responded including 77 plastic surgeons. About 75% worked in academic centers and 38% reported being in practice over 20 years. Coding practices were not significantly associated with training background or years in practice. Unilateral mandibular and unilateral nasoorbitoethmoid fractures demonstrated the greatest agreement with 99% and 88% of respondents agree upon a single coding strategy, respectively. Midface fractures, bilateral nasoorbitoethmoid fractures, and more complex mandibular demonstrated considerable variability in coding. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:There is a wide variability among members of the ASMS in CPT coding practices for the operative management of craniofacial trauma. To more accurately convey the complexity of craniofacial trauma reconstruction to billers and insurance companies, the authors must develop a more descriptive coding language that captures the heterogeneity of patient presentation and surgical procedures.

AIMS/OBJECTIVE:Reduction mammoplasty (RM) is one of the most common plastic surgeries in the US. We aimed to demonstrate the rate of incidental atypical and malignant breast lesions (AMBL) found in RM specimens and the impact of the number of submitted tissue sections on the rate of ABL. METHODS AND RESULTS/RESULTS:We analyzed our database for patients who underwent reduction mammoplasty between 2000 and 2018. Patients with a history of breast cancer were excluded from the study. All pathology reports were analyzed for AMBL (ALH, LCIS, FEA, ADH, DCIS, invasive carcinoma). The grossing protocol was to submit ten sections from each breast between 2000 and 2013, and six sections between 2014 and 2018. One hundred and sixty-nine of 5208 patients (3.3%) and 216 of 10,340 RM specimens (2.1%) showed at least one AMBL. Nineteen (0.36%) patients had incidental cancer. The median age of patients with AMBL was significantly higher than patients without ABL (59 vs. 45 years old). There was no cancer in patients < 30 years old. The age-controlled rate of overall AMBL as well as atypia and cancer only did not decrease by submitting fewer sections during the 2014-2018 period compared to the 2010-2013 period. CONCLUSION/CONCLUSIONS:Decreasing the number of tissue sections from ten to six did not lead to a significant decrease in the rate of overall AMBL or cancer. Our data suggest that submitting six tissue sections from each breast for patients >30 years old and two sections from each breast for patients < 30 years old would be sufficient.

We describe the use of the medial sural artery musculocutaneous perforator (MSAP) flap at our institution. It is a relatively new flap, originally described in 2001 for lower extremity defects, that has become increasingly popular for head and neck reconstruction due to its versatility, thinness, pliability, long pedicle, and particularly favorable donor site. It has been described for reconstruction of oral defects, but there is little published on its use in pharyngeal reconstruction. We suggest that the MSAP is an ideal flap for addressing defects caused by pharyngoesophageal stenosis, pharyngeal fistulas, or laryngopharyngectomies. We review 5 cases at our institution from June 2016 to November 2017.

BACKGROUND:Modification of endosteal implants through surface treatments have been investigated to improve osseointegration. Boronization has demonstrated favorable mechanical properties, but limited studies have assessed translational, in vivo outcomes. This study investigated the effect of implant surface boronization on bone healing. MATERIAL AND METHODS/METHODS:Two implant surface roughness profiles (acid etched, machined) in CP titanium (type II) alloy implants were boronized by solid-state diffusion until 10-15µm boron coating was achieved. The surface-treated implants were placed bilaterally into 5 adult sheep ilia for three and six weeks. Four implant groups were tested: boronized machined (BM), boronized acid-etched (BAA), control machined (CM), and control acid-etched (CAA). Osseointegration was quantified by calculating bone to implant contact (BIC) and bone area fraction occupancy (BAFO). RESULTS:Both implant types treated with boronization had BIC values not statistically different from machined control implants at t=3 weeks, and significantly less than acid-etched control (p<0.02). BAFO values were not statistically different for all 3-week groups except machined control (significantly less at p <0.02). BAFO had a significant downward trend from 3 to 6 weeks in both boronized implant types (p<0.03) while both control implant types had significant increases in BIC and BAFO from 3 to 6 weeks. CONCLUSIONS:Non-decalcified histology depicted intramembranous-like healing/remodeling in bone for controls, but an absence of this dynamic process in bone for boronized implants. These findings are inconsistent with in vitro work describing bone regenerative properties of elemental Boron and suggests that effects of boron on in vivo bone healing warrant further investigation.