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Violet Pietrok2-year-old girl with atypical facial cleft
Country:
 USA |
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Biography of Violet Pitrock
Violet Pitrock, a 2-year-old girl with an atypical facial cleft, has become the focus of high-precision plastic surgery using 3D printing technology. Born with a rare defect known as the Tessier facial cleft, Violet's dark brown eyes were set far apart, giving her the appearance of a predatory bird rather than a human. She also had a massive growth below her left eye and lacked nasal cartilage due to improper bone fusion. Seeking help, Violet's parents, Alicia Taylor and Matt Pitrock, turned to Dr. Mira at the Boston Children's Hospital, thousands of kilometers away from their home in Oregon.
Innovative Approach
To better understand Violet's bone structure before her complex surgery, Dr. Mira enlisted the help of Dr. Peter Weinstock to create a plastic 3D model of Violet's skull using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. The first model allowed for detailed discussions with the family regarding the most appropriate treatment plan. Subsequent 3D models provided further insight for the upcoming operation, enabling Dr. Mira to explore areas that would be visually inaccessible during the surgery. The plastic skull model helped determine the best approach to push her eye sockets closer together.
These groundbreaking 3D models have revolutionized medical care, offering surgeons new perspectives and opportunities for practice. Patients and their families can now gain a deeper understanding of complex procedures. According to Dr. Frank Rybitski, head of radiography and tomography at Ottawa Hospital and chair and professor of radiology at the University of Ottawa, 3D printing improves the accuracy and saves time during surgery. With a specialized printer that uses layers of liquid plastic instead of ink, a replica of a skull or chest can be created, depending on the surgeon's needs. This same process can also be applied to printing human cells, with previous models of blood vessels, simple organs, and bone fragments already being produced.
Violet's Journey
Although Dr. Mira had created models of other patients' skulls in the past, they often took weeks or even months to produce and cost thousands of dollars. However, with a new $400,000 printer, four identical copies of a model can now be made in just a few days, each costing around $1,200. The precision of the new-generation model is to the thickness of a hair. Dr. Mira emphasized the significance of physically manipulating these segments, stating that without the 3D models, surgeons would only have the opportunity to do so for the first time during the actual operation.
Violet's parents, Alicia and Matt, have five other children, including Violet's healthy twin sister, Cora. After the surgery, when the surgeon came to speak with the family, he was all smiles, assuring them that everything went perfectly. However, Violet's recovery process has not been easy, and there are still many challenges ahead. Her scalp skin was not strong enough to hold the sutures, putting all her repaired wounds at risk of reopening from the crown to the front of her head. Three months have passed, but the scars have not completely healed. The second surgery, aimed at restoring mobility to her eyelids, only resulted in partial correction. Further surgical interventions will be necessary to bring her eyes even closer together and form nasal cartilage. It will take much more time before Violet's face no longer captivates the attention of passersby driven by curiosity or, at times, undisguised disdain. Some are even willing to hurl insults at the little girl simply because she looks different.
But Violet herself seems oblivious to the negativity. She happily engages with strangers and uses her pink walker toy to aid her mobility, learning to stand by grasping the special handle and maintaining balance. She tilts her head back and laughs uncontrollably when her mother tickles her.
