What you need to know about different types of maxillofacial surgery?
Maxillofacial Surgery is the diagnosis and treatment of a wide spectrum of disorders, injuries and defects which affect the skeleton, facial complex, and also the jaws. As the surgery includes the broad range of disorders, there are various types of maxillofacial surgery done in the word.
If you have decided to have maxillofacial
surgery, reading this article helps you improve your knowledge about several types
of maxillofacial surgery and different aspects of it.
What is maxillofacial surgery
Considering maxillofacial meaning which is the area of the mouth, jaws, face and neck, maxillofacial surgeons are professionally trained to recognize and treat disorders and defects in the hard and soft tissues of maxillofacial area.
Most common types of maxillofacial surgery
Maxillofacial surgery procedures cover many
types of surgery, it ranges from facial
abnormalities to skin cancer, from corrective jaw to facial aesthetic surgery
and from obstructive sleep apneas to head and neck cancer.
Common types of maxillofacial surgery include
the following:
Corrective Jaw Surgery
Jaw surgery is also known as orthognathic
surgery.
Jaw surgery corrects deformities of the jaw
bones and teeth to improve their functions. Not only the surgery improves the
functions of the jaw and teeth, but also it improves the facial appearance.
When jaw problems can not be corrected through
orthodontics, jaw surgery could be a great alternative.
Usually before the jaw surgery, an orthodontic
treatment is received. The orthodontic treatment repositions the teeth by fixed
appliances. It takes 6-9 months to remove the fixed appliances and have the jaw
surgery.
Jaw surgery may imply the upper jaw which is
called maxilla, or the lower jaw which is called mandible, or it can involve
the combination of both jaws.
Jaw surgery could help to:
- Correct problems with speech or swallowing
- Comfortably and fully close the mouth
- Improve chewing and biting
- Correct breathing problems when sleeping, such as snoring
- Correct receding of lower jaw and chin
- Correct unbalanced appearance of the face from the side or front
Head and Neck Cancer
Around 2% of all diagnosed cancers are about
the mouth, neck and jaw cancers.
Head and neck cancers include the mouth,
tongue, salivary glands and wide area of the throat.
The treatment procedures vary from a person to
another person and different factors can change the treatment plan. Some
effective factors are:
- the patient's age
- Specific location of the tumor
- The stage of the cancer
Through the treatment that includes surgery,
oral and maxillofacial surgeons play an important role. The surgery requires a
team and several surgeries includes maxillofacial surgery, reconstructive
plastic surgery, general surgery and otorhinolaryngology surgery.
Surgery team consists of oral and
maxillofacial surgeons, orthodontists, surgeon of ear nose and throat,
reconstructive and plastic surgeon and oncologist.
Temporomandibular Joint Disorders
Temporomandibular joints (TMJ) are two joints that connect the jawbone to
the skull and there is one joint on each side of the jaw.
One of the temporomandibular disorders causes
pain in the jaw joint and in the muscles that control jaw movement. In most
cases, the pain of the jawbone or related muscles could be relieved through
nonsurgical treatments and the pain eases after a short period of time.
When nonsurgical treatments do not control the
pain and conservative measures fail, surgery is the last retreat.
Several
types of temporomandibular joint surgery are possible, but the proper
type depends on individuals symptoms or severity.
There are three common types of
temporomandibular joint surgery: Arthrocentesis, Arthroscopy and Open-joint surgery.
Dental Implantology
Dental implants are effectively used to
replace missing teeth. The material used for dental implants is titanium screw
which is placed in the lower jaw or upper jaw.
In most cases, the implant procedure is a team
effort, at first a maxillofacial surgeon places the related implant in the
bone, then a restorative dentist fits the teeth.
Cleft and Craniofacial Surgery
Different types of maxillofacial surgery
correct congenital and acquired abnormalities of maxillofacial and craniofacial
regions. The most common type of craniofacial region is cleft lip and palate
among children.
To know more about common surgeries in the
craniofacial region you can read the article about different types of craniofacial surgery on this website.
Implants for maxillofacial surgery
Maxillofacial implants have revolutionized the
maxillofacial surgery. Maxillofacial implants are utilized in correction of
dentofacial abnormalities, reconstruction of jaw bones after ablative surgery,
maxillofacial trauma and restoration of lost stomatognathic apparatus.
Appropriate types of maxillofacial plates and
screws used in above surgeries.
In this article we provide you with a comprehensive description of maxillofacial surgery but as the maxillofacial region covers a wide range of surgeries.

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