What is Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery ?
The aim of this surgery is to correct a large variety of defects, injury and diseases present in face, head, hard and soft tissues, jaws, oral and maxillofacial region and the neck. People opt for this surgery who suffering from different conditions such as facial pain, misaligned jaws and wisdom teeth.
Oral Maxillofacial surgery Treatments and Procedures
- It involves the treatment of injuries of mouth, teeth, face and jaws which has been caused due to trauma. Maxillofacial and oral surgeons treat the conditions of fractures of lower and upper jaws and orbits, cosmetic managements of facial lacerations and the trauma.
- The surgical correction is done of facial and oral deformities. These are the result of congenital deformities like palate and cleft which is caused when one or all portions of the oral nasal cavity does not grow together in fetal development and when there is a difference between the skeletal growth of lower and upper jaws.
- To address soft and hard tissue injuries of the lower or upper jaws, reconstructive surgery is used. These injuries could be the result the of trauma or injury, long-term denture wear or tumor surgery.
- The surgeons perform the cosmetic facial procedures specifically on an outpatient basis under IV sedation or local anesthesia.
- The procedure of dental implant is used to replace one tooth, numerous teeth or the whole mouthful of teeth. The dental implants are more comfortable and long-lasting than the conventional dentures.
Sinus Lift
Sinus lift (sinus augmentation) is a surgery that adds bone in the upper jaw area of premolars and molars. The bone is added between the maxillary sinuses and the jaw that can be on either side of the nose. For making space to add the bone, the sinus membrane is lifted.
Oral Maxillofacial Surgery Procedures
Facial Trauma
The facial trauma injuries caused by impersonal violence, accident falls, hit from a heavy object or sports injuries are treated by the expert surgeons. The injuries could be bony injuries or soft tissue like fractured facial bones of the eye socket, nose or cheek, fractured jaws (lower and upper jaw), intra oral lacerations, Avulsed teeth and facial lacerations.
Bone Grafting
Both minor and major bone grafting surgeries are performed. The procedure of bone grafting can restore the implant sites having poor bone structure which could be a result of the previous gum disease, injuries or extractions. The bone could be either the patient’s bone taken from the hip or jaw or could also be taken from a tissue bank. To change the bone in the posterior upper jaw, sinus bone graft technique is used. The process of guided tissue generation or guided bone generation is done to persuade more bone generation by dissolving the special membranes under the gum and thereby protecting the bone graft.
Dental Implants
Dental implants replace the teeth which function like normal and natural teeth by preserving the facial contours. The facial structure can be effectively preserved and prevents the deterioration of bones when several teeth are missing. The small implants are made up of small titanium posts and is then put inside the patient’s jawbone where the teeth are missing. The implants are tooth root substitutes and these are positioned inside the jawbone. The titanium and the bone combine together and acts as a stronghold for the new artificial teeth.
Jaw Surgery (Orthognathic Surgery )
The surgery involves the movement of the jaws into a normal and perfect position. The orthodontics aims at straightening the teeth and the corrective jaw surgery aims at relocating the misaligned jaws. These processes drastically improve the facial appearance and makes sure that the teeth is working properly
The different problems should be evaluated-
- Open bite
- Breathing issues
- Problem with biting, chewing and swallowing
- TMJ pain or chronic jaw
- Protruding jaw
- Speech Problems
Wisdom Teeth Removal
An adult has 32 teeth (16 on top and 16 on bottom). But an average mouth has 28 teeth and it becomes difficult to fit 32 teeth inside the mouth which can hold only 28 teeth. Wisdom teeth (third molars) are the other four teeth. It becomes necessary to extract the wisdom teeth when they are prohibited from correctly erupting inside the mouth. This impacted teeth tend to take many positions in order to find a way that can allow the impacted teeth to erupt properly.
Many problems can arise due to the poor position of impacted teeth. When the impacted teeth is not fully erupted, then the bacteria grow leading to an infection and will result in pain, illness and stiffness. Serious problems of tumor or cysts can also occur which can eventually destroy the healthy teeth and the jawbone.
TMJ Disorders (Temporomandibular Joint Disorder)
The problem starts when there is a problem with the jaw point, jaw and also the facial muscles which control the moving and chewing the jaw. Injuries to the muscles of the neck and head, jaw or temporomandibular caused by a heavy whiplash will result into TMJ disorder. TMJ disorders will lead to many problems which includes pain, grafting or clicking noises while opening your mouth, misaligned bite, repeated neck aches and headaches and problem in opening the mouth wide.
Oral Pathology
From the inside, the mouth is lined with mucosa (special type of skin). This lining is very smooth and is of coral pink color. Change in the color or appearance is a sign for oral pathological process. Oral cancer is one such problem. The different signs are-
- Problem in swallowing or chewing
- Problem of chronic sore throat
- Development of red and white patches inside the mouth
- Continuous bleeding of the sore
- Thickening of the lining of the skin inside the mouth
Cleft Lip and Palate
Both cleft lip and palate occurs during the process of early pregnancy when the different areas of the face have developed separately and are not joined properly. The cleft lip surgery is done when the child is ten weeks old. The surgery focuses on closing the separation, giving a normal shape to the mouth and also restoring the muscle function. While a cleft palate surgery is done at 7 to 18 months old child depending upon the child’s individual situation.
Cosmetic Jawline Surgery
Facial cosmetic surgery is considered as the choice solution for the correction of physical deformities resulting from aging, injury, disease and birth defects. The cosmetic jaw surgery procedures include treatment of upper jaw (Maxillary Osteotomy) and lower jaw (Mandibular Osteotomy). It also includes Apertognathia, also known as jaw joint surgery, wherein the oval shaped gap between the upper and lower front teeth is filled.
Cyst and Tumors
An unwarranted growth in any part of the body is biopsied if it is present more than 10 to 14 days. A biopsy is a surgical procedure wherein an entire section of the growth is removed. Such lesions can lead to oral cancer in the later stage and therefore all apprehensive lesions should be biopsied.
Cost of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
The cost for this surgery in India is very affordable having world class facilities and services.The average cost of the Oral and Maxillofacial surgery in India is around $ 2,550, which is almost 1/10th as compared to the treatment offered in U.S.A.