An Alternative Technique for Sculpting Auricular Prosthesis.

Sarkis C. ISIKBAY, D.D.S. (I.U.S.D., Maxillofacial Prosthetics)

A challenging step in the fabrication of an auricular prosthesis to replace a missing ear is the creation of a three-dimensional mirror image of the remaining ear. In the past, sculptings have been made by either modifying a wax model of a similar ear, or carving blocks of wax or clay. The former method requires a wide selection of ear models, whereas the latter one can be time consuming and quite difficult. This table clinic demonstrates a technique to fabricate wax models of the missing ear that are nearly identical to the remaining ear. By sectioning a wax model of the remaining ear into thin slices, it can then be inverted to form an armature for the final sculptured pattern. Using this procedure, a wax-up of the prosthetic ear can easily and rapidly be accomplished.

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