In-House Manufacture of Sterilizable, Scaled, Patient-Specific 3D-Printed Models for Rhinoplasty

Bekisz JM, Liss HA, Maliha SG, Witek L, Coelho PG, Flores RL.

What this paper says

The authors describe a protocol producing sterilizable 3D printed models of a patient's nose before and after a planned rhinoplasty, used in 12 patients at a materials cost of about $5.00 per set.

Overview

3D printing has been used in rhinoplasty planning but cost and workflow have limited it. This paper reports a protocol using free open-access software and a departmentally owned printer to make the process affordable and repeatable in house.

Sections of note

Preoperative 3D photographic images underwent virtual rhinoplasty in Blender, a freely available 3D imaging and sculpting program.
Once the ideal postoperative result was achieved digitally, scaled, sterilizable, patient-specific models of both the preoperative and the planned result were printed in house.
Models were manufactured and used for 12 patients undergoing rhinoplasty.
Average time to prepare a set of preoperative and postoperative models was 3 hours.
Printing required 18 to 24 hours per model.
Materials cost was approximately $5.00 per set of surgical models.
The authors expect interest to grow as 3D printer hardware costs fall. The abstract reports no accuracy measurements or outcome data.

What it means for a patient

Two physical models can be made, one of the current nose and one of the planned result, both sterilizable for use during surgery.
The materials cost is minimal; the main inputs are staff time and printer time.
Limits: 12 patients, no comparison group, no measurement of accuracy against the actual result, and no satisfaction or outcome data.
Turnaround is at least a day per model, so this must be arranged well before surgery.

Why this paper matters

Cost and workflow have been the practical barriers to 3D printing in rhinoplasty, and this addresses both with open-source software and existing hardware. It makes the technique reproducible in an academic department. Whether the models improve communication or surgical accuracy is untested here.

Terms

Virtual surgical planning: Designing the operation on a digital model before performing it.
3D photographic imaging: Capturing a face as a 3D surface model rather than a flat image.
Patient-specific model: A model built from an individual patient's own imaging.
Sterilizable: Able to be cleaned for use in the operating field.
Open-access software: A program available free of charge.

Summary written by rhinoplasty.cc from the abstract, 2026-09-09; not medical advice. The authors' own abstract follows.

From the abstract

“Rhinoplasty relies on clear patient communication and precise execution of a three-dimensional (3D) plan to achieve optimal results. As 3D imaging and printing continue to grow in popularity within the medical field, rhinoplasty surgeons have begun to leverage these resources as an aid to preoperative planning,…”

Excerpt; the full abstract is on PubMed.