If you or someone you know ever suffers a traumatic injury to the mouth or jaw, it will most likely be a maxillofacial surgeon who performs the procedure(s) which will restore the damage done by this type of serious injury. These highly skilled surgeons specialize in the mouth, head, neck and jaw. But you don’t need to suffer from a traumatic injury to require the services of a maxillofacial surgeon. Here are some other circumstances that might call for the services of one of these trained professionals:
- People who want to replace missing molars with implants, but don’t have sufficient bone tissue available to accommodate the implants, will most likely be referred to a maxillofacial surgeon who can perform a bone graft procedure to resolve the issue.
- People who suffer from some type of disease in or around the mouth might also benefit from the services of these surgeons, who are trained in reconstructive jaw surgery, for example.
- Patients who suffer from TMJ (temporomandibular joint) disorder may need surgery to repair the jaw joint.
- People who need to have impacted wisdom teeth removed might be referred to a maxillofacial surgeon.
- Patients with cleft palates are often operated on by a maxillofacial surgeon.
As you can imagine, these professionals require an immense amount of education, training and experience to perform their jobs. A maxillofacial surgeon is required to have a full understanding of dentistry, as well as general medicine as it relates to the mouth, head, jawbone and neck. The first step is typically finishing dental school, after which the aspiring surgeon usually needs a minimum of another four years of medical school (but six years is not uncommon). A maxillofacial surgeon is also required to have training in anesthesiology since theirs is the only field in which a surgeon may be required to administer all types of sedation.
From a patient’s point of view, all this required training should be good news. After all, many oral surgeries take place as a result of an emergency situation. If you find yourself or a loved one in such a circumstance, you should find some comfort in the fact that the surgeon performing whatever procedure is necessary will most likely have gone through nearly 10 years of dental school and specialized training programs. In fact, maxillofacial surgeons are some of the most highly skilled dental/medical specialists working today. So, while we sincerely hope you don’t find yourself in any type of emergency situation, if you do you’ll most definitely want the services of one of these exceptional surgeons.
