3DBODY.TECH 2017 - Paper 17.139

D. B. Stefan and D. A. Gilbert, "3D Body Scanning - An Important Tool for Digital Archiving of Cosmetic Surgery Procedures", in Proc. of 3DBODY.TECH 2017 - 8th Int. Conf. and Exh. on 3D Body Scanning and Processing Technologies, Montreal QC, Canada, 11-12 Oct. 2017, pp. 139-153, https://doi.org/10.15221/17.139.

Title:

3D Body Scanning - An Important Tool for Digital Archiving of Cosmetic Surgery Procedures

Authors:

David B. STEFAN 1, David A. GILBERT 2

1 Novaptus Systems Inc., Chesapeake VA, USA;
2 The Hague Plastic and Cosmetic Surgery Center, Norfolk VA, USA

Abstract:

Background
At the end of 2002, a 3D whole-body white light scanner was introduced into a cosmetic surgery practice in Norfolk, Virginia. The stated purpose was to investigate this device as an aid for evaluating body contouring procedures. For the first time, the surgeon could pre-operatively scan a patient, measure "cbody areas of interest," and examine in detail the patient's 3D body contours to help plan for the pending surgical procedure. Multiple, custom designed measurement templates were then applied to the 3D body model to extract measurements pertinent to the surgical procedure. The pre-operative 3D body model was stored. Post-operative scans of the patient would then be taken periodically, and measured with the same measurement templates. The difference in measurements, including volume and surface area document the physical changes of patient's body resulting from the procedure. Many cosmetic surgery patients return for additional procedures over the course of years. The patient's 3D digital archive provides the surgeon with the ability to consult previous 3D body models and evaluate the measurement changes of past procedures. These unique insights, combined with a current 3D scan and traditional medical information form a contiguous and robust foundation for assessing the pending surgical procedure.

Methods
Three case examples are presented. Case 1 considers multiple cosmetic procedures performed in a close succession and the 3D scans and measurement templates used for pre-operative and post-operative evaluation. Case 2 presents an example 3D body scans of sequential cosmetic surgical procedures to replace and rebuild the left and right breasts of a subject. Case 3 involves multiple cosmetic procedures performed on the same patient over a period of years. In each case, the patient's 3D digital archive played an important role in documenting each surgical procedure and provided a platform to evaluate the contours of the patient for the pending surgery.

Discussion
A 3D whole-body scan is an independent entity. It represents the accurate physical appearance of the subject standing in the scan chamber as of the date and time of scan acquisition. A cosmetic surgery patient may undergo multiple procedures at once, such as breast reduction and abdominoplasty. The result of each procedure can be measured by applying separate customized measurement templates to the post-operative 3D body model. The patient may also undergo a sequence of procedures over time. Each post-operative 3D body model can be evaluated independently. The entire set of pre-operative and post-operative 3D body scans form a historical 3D digital archive and can be appended to the traditional patient medical record.

Conclusion
The utility of a 3D whole-body scanner is in its ability to create an accurate 3D body model of the subject within the scan chamber, thereby creating a permanent 3D record once stored. A "clean" 3D scan documents the subject's physical body. Measurements can be extracted at any time as appropriate, but the archived 3D body model is the important record. Subsequent body scans can be measured and compared to the initial body scan. Many cosmetic surgery procedures result in immediate physical changes to the body. Each post-operative scan documents these changes. Successive post-operative scans form the patient's 3D digital archive. This archive can serve as the basis for further surgical planning, validating surgical results, or can be used as a tool for independently assessing surgical outcomes.

Details:

Full paper: 17.139.pdf
Proceedings: 3DBODY.TECH 2017, 11-12 Oct. 2017, Montreal QC, Canada
Pages: 139-153
DOI: 10.15221/17.139

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Proceedings of 3DBODY.TECH International Conferences on 3D Body Scanning & Processing Technologies, © Hometrica Consulting, Switzerland