Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is a field of dentistry that deals in the diagnosis, surgical and adjunctive treatment of disease, defects, and injuries involving both the functional and aesthetic aspects of hard tissue and soft tissue of the oral and maxillofacial region.
Surgical procedures done by the maxillofacial surgeon include extraction, surgical impaction, correction of cleft lip and cleft palate, treating space infections, trauma and fracture management, surgical correction of maxillofacial deformities, orthognathic surgery, management of TMJ disorders, sleep apnoea, treating benign and malignant tumors, cysts, salivary gland disorders, and more.
Dental Extraction
It is a surgical procedure involving the removal of a tooth from the alveolar bone under local or general anesthesia due to dental caries, impaction, trauma, mobility or to gain space for orthodontic treatment.
Infection Control & Management of Head & Neck Region
Infections that commonly occur in the oral and maxillofacial region are dental abscess, cyst, infections of buccal space, canine space, infratemporal space, submandibular space, submental space, sublingual space, Ludwig's angina, and the list goes on. In such situations immediate treatment is absolutely necessary, if not it can even be life-threatening.
Management of Facial Deformities
Facial disfigurement is seen in the case of congenital disorders. A few such defects are cleft lip and cleft palate, Apert syndrome, Crouzon syndrome, hemifacial microsomia, craniofacial microsomia, Pfeiffer syndrome, Treacher Collins syndrome, Nager variant, Miller syndrome, Pierre Robin sequence, and microtia. Surgical management is done to correct such defects on a sequential basis, depending on age and development.
Management of Facial Fractures
Fracture is a partial or complete break in the bone or cartilage, with symptoms of pain, swelling, bruising, bleeding, and discolored skin. Fracture management is done by immobilization of fractured parts with a plaster cast, metal plates and screws, or external fixators.
Oncological Surgery — Head and Neck
Management of tumors, be they benign (non-cancerous) or malignant (cancerous), is performed under this department. The most commonly encountered ones are tumors of the parotid gland, lip, tongue, cheek, and more. Management is done by surgical resection of the tumor, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, immunotherapy, and targeted therapy.
Facial Aesthetic Correction Surgeries
The department that deals with aesthetic improvement of the face, restoring facial structures, and correcting jaw position is maxillofacial surgery. Procedures usually performed include rhinoplasty (nose), blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery), rhytidectomy (facelift), brow lift, genioplasty (chin augmentation), otoplasty (ear repositioning), liposuction, fat transfer, and orthognathic surgeries.
Dental Impaction Surgeries
Tooth impaction is a pathological situation where a tooth fails to attain its normal functional position. The impaction rate is higher for third molars compared to other teeth. Impacted teeth may remain asymptomatic or may be associated with various pathologies such as caries, pericoronitis, cysts, tumors, and root resorption of the adjacent tooth.
TMJ Disorders
The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) acts like a sliding hinge, connecting your jawbone to your skull. Dysfunction can lead to pain, discomfort, difficulty in chewing, clicking, and locking of the jaw. Treatment of TMJ disorders involves stress management, physiotherapy, heat therapy, splinting, mouth guards, prosthetics, muscle relaxants, and NSAIDs.
Related Services
- Dental Implantology — implant-supported restorations after surgery
- Dentures & Prosthodontics — prosthetic replacement options
- Orthodontics — corrective treatment for teeth alignment