Using 3D Print Technology to Restore a Child’s Nose

For the first time in the United States, a patient has undergone a complex and intricate series of surgical procedures to implant a fully functional, three-dimensional (3D) printed “model” of a human nose. New York Eye and Ear Infirmary of Mount Sinai surgeons Tal Dagan, MD, Associate Adjunct Surgeon, and Grigoriy Mashkevich, MD, Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology, Division of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, performed the operations on Dallan Jennet, a 14-year-old boy from the Marshall Islands. Dallan’s face was disfigured at the age of 9 after he fell onto a live power line, severely burning his entire face and losing his nose.

“The procedure is akin to a ‘nose transplant’ in that we were able to replace the nose with a functional implant,” says lead physician Dr. Dagan. “This procedure may be a breakthrough in facial reconstruction because the patient will never have to deal with the standard issues of transplantation, such as tissue rejection or a lifetime of immunosuppressive therapies.”

Dallan flew halfway around the world to New York City for the opportunity to live a normal life with the help of Canvasback Missions, Inc., a nonprofit organization that brings health care and health education to the Pacific Islands. Treatment began in early 2015 in the Marshall Islands, where the patient underwent the first of five surgeries. Expanders were inserted under the remaining skin of his nose, creating space under his skin for the actual reconstruction, which would be performed at New York Eye and Ear Infirmary.