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The RCCC CranioMaxilloFacial Reconstruction Program

Current statistics show that 26% of all wounded warriors treated in U.S. military facilities suffer maxillofacial injuries, which include soft tissue face avulsions and facial burns in addition to craniofacial bone defects. These injuries are devastating both physically and psychologically, and impose tremendous costs on both the warrior and the military over the long term. Current treatments in craniomaxillofacial (CMF) reconstruction practices are inadequate to treat the unique and massive craniofacial deficits resulting from blast injuries. Presently, massive bone loss to the craniofacial complex is reconstructed with materials that only transiently restore anatomical form and limited function. Current techniques and therapies neither mitigate against scar contracture nor achieve complex soft tissue coverage esthetics, including those for the ears and nose. The RCCC CranioMaxilloFacial Program exploits versatile biomaterials and biological scaffold platforms to produce therapeutics that will do the following: (i) regenerate the complex anatomical zones of the CMF that have been damaged or avulsed as a consequence of military trauma; and (ii) restore the physical integrity, function, and identity of warfighters. 




Bones of the Face

Soft Tissues of the Face