What is an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon (OMS)?
Oral and maxillofacial surgeons are dental specialists who treat conditions, defects, injuries, and esthetic aspects of the mouth, teeth, jaws, and face. Their training includes a four-year graduate degree in dentistry and the completion of a minimum four-year hospital surgical residency program.
Oral and maxillofacial surgeons care for patients who experience such conditions as problem wisdom teeth, facial pain, and misaligned jaws. They treat accident victims suffering facial injuries, offer reconstructive and dental implant surgery, and care for patients with tumors and cysts of the jaws and functional and esthetic conditions of the maxillofacial areas.
With specialized knowledge in pain control and advanced training in anesthesia, the oral and maxillofacial surgeon is able to provide quality care with maximum patient comfort and safety in the office setting.
Thanks to the development of advanced medical devices and biomaterials, many of today's facial cosmetic procedures are minimally invasive and can be performed in an office setting using local and/or intravenous anesthesia. Some procedures may require use of an outpatient or same day surgery center, or hospital.
Because of their surgical and dental background, oral and maxillofacial surgeons are uniquely qualified to perform cosmetic procedures that involve the functional and aesthetic aspects of the face, mouth, teeth and jaws. Extensive education and training in surgical procedures involving soft tissue (skin and muscle) and hard tissue (bone and cartilage) finely attune the oral and maxillofacial surgeon to the need for harmony between facial appearance and function.. Oral Surgery