Distraction Osteogenesis of the Craniomaxillofacial Skeleton

Since the advent of distraction osteogenesis, more novel applications of its use are being reported in the literature. In certain conditions, distraction osteogenesis is now a mainstay of treatment achieving outcomes that would not be obtainable without its use. Though its applications are vast, careful and targeted use of distraction osteogenesis is of paramount importance to obtain desirable outcomes, with minimal morbidity to the patient. While some applications of distraction osteogenesis have dissipated over the years, novel applications, combined with custom patient-specific therapy, such as those obtained from virtual surgical planning, CAD/CAM fabricated guides, and, in some cases, patient-specific distractors are contributing to another renaissance in distraction osteogenesis.