Kim Roderick Youngdo, Bae Sam Seoho, Feinberg Stephen Elliott
Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Michigan Health System, Towsley Center Rm G1114, 1515 East Medical Center Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5222, USA.
Department of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Michigan Health System, Towsley Center Rm G1114, 1515 East Medical Center Drive, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5222, USA.
Oral Maxillofac Surg Clin North Am. 2017 Feb;29(1):89-104. doi: 10.1016/j.coms.2016.08.007.
There is a recognized need to reconstruct and restore complex craniomaxillofacial soft tissues. The objective of this article is to focus on the role that tissue engineering/regenerative medicine can play in addressing various barriers (vascularity, tissue bulk, volitional control, and esthetics) and impediments (timing, regional applicability/dissemination, and regulation by the US Food and Drug Administration) to optimal tissue reconstruction of complex soft tissue structures. We will use the lips as an example to illustrate our points.