Qualitative Criteria for Feasible Cranial Implant Designs.

As part of the 2021 MICCAI AutoImplant Challenge, CT scans from 11 patients who had undergone cranioplasty using artificial implants were collected. Images of the reconstructed defective skulls before cranioplasty for these patients were shared with participating teams. Three teams submitted cranial implant designs. An experienced neurosurgeon evaluated the submissions to judge the feasibility of the implant designs for use in cranioplasty procedures. None of the submitted cranial implant designs were deemed feasible for use in cranioplasty procedures without modifications. While many implants adequately restored the skull shape by covering the defect area, most contained excess material outside of the defect, fit poorly within the defect and were too thick. Future research should move beyond solely restoring the skull shape and focus on designing implants that contain smooth transitions between skull and implant, cover the entire defect, contain no material outside of the defect, have minimal thickness, and are implantable.