Abstract
BACKGROUND: Successfully restoring facial contours continues to pose a significant challenge for surgeons. This study aims to utilize head-mounted display-based augmented reality (AR) navigation technology for facial soft tissue defect reconstruction and to evaluate its accuracy and effectiveness, exploring its feasibility in craniofacial surgery. METHODS: Hololens 2 was utilized to construct the AR guidance system for facial fat grafting. Twenty artificial cases with facial soft tissue defects were randomly assigned to Group A and Group B, undergoing filling surgeries with the AR guidance system and conventional methods, respectively. All postoperative three-dimensional models were superimposed onto virtual plans to evaluate the accuracy of the system versus conventional filling methods. Additionally, procedure completion time was recorded to assess system efficiency relative to conventional methods. RESULTS: The error in facial soft tissue defect reconstruction assisted by the system in Group A was 2.09 ± 0.56 mm, significantly lower than the 3.23 ± 1.15 mm observed with conventional methods in Group B (p < 0.05). Additionally, the time required for facial defect filling reconstruction using the system in Group A was 25.45 ± 2.58 min, markedly shorter than the 37.05 ± 3.34 min needed with conventional methods in Group B (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION: The visual navigation offered by the fat grafting AR guidance system presents obvious advantages in facial soft tissue defect reconstruction, facilitating enhanced precision and efficiency in these filling procedures.