Computer-designed, 3D-printed models are emerging as a useful new tool for planning and carrying out cosmetic plastic surgery of the nose, reports a paper in the June issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

Customized, life-sized, 3D-printed, models can provide a useful visual reference in the operating room for plastic surgeons performing rhinoplasty, according to a special “Ideas and Innovations” article by ASPS Member Surgeon Bardia Amirlak, MD, FACS, of University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, and colleagues.