Preparing a hemimandibulectomy patient for delayed reconstructive surgery.

A rehabilitation device was designed and used before a reconstructive orthognathic procedure in an adult patient with a severe facial asymmetry. The asymmetry developed as a result of a left hemimandibulectomy in childhood. With this prototype device, the remaining hemimandible was gradually brought into its natural position and dynamics in order to accommodate a graft. The goals were to improve esthetics and function, reduce the chance of the remaining hemimandible not adapting to the graft, and reduce the risk of secondary TMJ pathosis after the mandibular reconstruction.