ABSTRACT
The annual growth in U.S. healthcare expenditure has dramatically increased since the turn of
the millennium (1). The biomedical burden imparted by surgery on the craniofacial skeleton
alone has accounted for over $585 million in medical care, with over 16,000 craniotomies/
craniectomies and 32,000 posttraumatic facial reconstructions performed in 2002 (2). Consid-
ering the unabated demand and burgeoning costs, craniofacial research has endeavored to
develop new, more effective approaches to treat the multitude of conditions currently faced by
clinicians. Three main areas of investigation have emerged as key elements for continued
advancement in the field of plastic surgery: craniosynostosis and its underlying developmental
and molecular underpinnings, the mechanics and biomolecular cascades involved in distrac-
tion osteogenesis, and the definition of cellular building blocks and bioengineered scaffolds for
bone tissue engineering. This chapter will specifically focus on these areas and present recent
findings which will continue to help navigate investigations over the next decade. Through
insights gained into these guiding principles, it is hoped that novel treatment strategies may be
developed which may ultimately translate into improved clinical outcomes.
