Major mandible reconstruction: design, analysis, and additive manufacturing of customised implant and surgical osteotomy guide

A patient-specific major mandible reconstruction has been presented in this article. During the process, a customised surgical osteotomy resection guide was designed to avoid overcutting and undercutting of the infected part of diseased mandible. The reconstructed bone models and customised mandible implant were 3D printed to test form and fit of the implant. Finite element analysis (FEA) was used to simulate the distribution of von Mises stress and deformation in Ti6Al4V implant by subjecting it to an occlusal bite force of 300 N, replicating the forces experienced during biting. The analysis was performed for four different biting scenarios. The highest values for maximum von Mises stress and maximum deformation was observed when the biting force was applied at the incisor. Despite variations in stress and deformation, the Ti6Al4V implant was determined to be safe in all four biting scenarios.