Dr.

Supreet Singh Nayyar, AFMC

2012

Computer Aided Facial Assessment

(for more topics & presentations in ENT, visit www.nayyarENT.com) Software requirements Must be compatible with present & future programs & computers Newer softwares web based capabilities o Track patient relationships First telephone call to all appointment calls Pre operative assessment & patient counselling details Surgery details Postoperative management Track even skin care product use and sales Track in-office inventory Track financial details Software should easily customize materials (such as forms) for the patient Should decrease the need for the patient to ask questions before and after surgery Should simplify the tasks of the office staff Digital Photography, Computer Imaging, And Photoarchiving Photographic images in facial plastic surgery play a critical role in o Photodocumentation o Patient education o Preoperative planning o Teaching purposes Consistent, uniform, high-quality photography allows the best opportunity for critical selfassessment and self-education by surgeons Uniform photographs are essential for legal documentation of surgical events and outcomes. Furthermore an increasingly sophisticated patient population often asks to see photographic examples of a surgeons work Equipment, lighting and background, film selection, and a standardized photographic technique are critical aspects of achieving satisfactory images Digital cameras Photographic storage more cost-effective and efficient Patient counselling based on pre op images Patients seeking cosmetic surgery now often expect preoperative imaging This can facilitate doctor-patient communication and has the potential to help provide realistic patient expectations Typically, a patient presenting to the plastic surgeon will undergo preoperative photography Either at the time of the initial visit (or at a later visit), the plastic surgeon or a staff member will review the proposed changes in the patients physical appearance on the patients computerized image It must be carefully explained to the patient that this exercise is nothing more than another form of communication In this way, digital photography helps ensure that both the surgeon and the patient share similar surgical goals
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Dr. Supreet Singh Nayyar, AFMC

2012

Indeed, computer imaging, when accompanied by appropriate explanation, provides the opportunity for improved patient-doctor communication The surgeon or staff member should explain to the patient that computer based morphing cannot take into account certain unpredictable factors that are a part of the practice of surgery Patient is analog and not digital; so the results of an actual surgery can in no way be predicted or represented in advance by a computer simulation. The imaging is simply a way for both the patient and doctor to share an image of the surgical goal Incorporate provisions that address this disclosure into a consent form

Help & guidance to surgeon Various expert system modules, such as the Gunter Rhinoplasty Module (Mirror Imaging Systems), may aid the surgeon in selecting an effective technique for a particular deformity These algorithms reflect a database that summarizes the approach of a particular expert or the consensus approach of a panel of experts in a variety of clinical situations These systems may be most useful for resident surgeons and novice surgeons 3-Dimensional Imaging Device in Facial Aesthetic & Reconstructive Surgery Using conventional methods, the assessment of facial aesthetic outcomes is largely based upon subjective observation in contrast to objectively measured data It is not possible to quantify 3-dimensional change on a 2-dimensional surface, such as a photograph Attempting to make measurements based on photographs, for many years the state of the art, is inherently inaccurate as the facial structure is 3-dimensional One of the most challenging issues of imaging is producing a reliable and consistent method of obtaining 3 dimensional images of a patient, both preoperatively and postoperatively over time Newer technologies multiple images taken to create a 3 dimensional image (e.g. Minolta Vivid 300) Has a high degree of precision for depicting the surface topography in facial reconstructive and aesthetic patients Use of these 3-dimensional devices accurately capture the finest details of a human face over different time points Collating each time point study the imagery to quantify topographical changes of the patients face over time This type of 3-dimensional imagery can serve as an improved objective guide to assess changes in facial surface topography, both in the immediate and long-term post-operative period Provides better & a more reliable, objective, and consistent method than conventional photography

(for more topics & presentations in ENT, visit www.nayyarENT.com)

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