A customized head and neck support system

Abstract

Purpose : To describe a customized head and neck immobilization system for patients receiving radiotherapy including a head support that conforms to the posterior contour of the head and neck. Methods: The system includes a customized headrest to support the posterior head and neck. This is fixed to a thermoplastic face mask that molds to the anterior head/face contours. The shape of these customized head and neck supports were compared to ‘standard” supports. Results : This system is comfortable for the patients and appears to be effective in reproducing the setup of the treatment. Conclusions : The variability in the size and shape of the customized posterior supports exceeded that of ‘standard” headrests. It is our clinical impression that the customized supports improve reproducibility and are now a standard part of our immobilization system. The quantitative analysis of the customized headrests and some commonly used ‘standard” headrests suggests that the customized supports are better able to address variabilities in patient shape.