“Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
Orthognathic Surgery
Facial Trauma
Sinus Lift Procedure
Orthognathic Surgery
Orthognathic surgery is surgery performed on the bones of the jaws to change their positions. Orthognathic surgery is corrective facial surgery where deformities of the jaw exist. It may be indicated for functional, cosmetic, or health reasons. It is surgery commonly done on the jaws in conjunction with orthodontic treatment, which straightens the teeth.
Facial Trauma
Facial trauma, also known as maxillofacial trauma, is any injury to the face or jaw bone. Facial trauma may present with skin lacerations, obstruction to the nasal cavity or sinuses, damage to the orbital sockets, fracture to the jawbone and missing teeth.
Treatment for facial trauma often involves airway control, bleeding control, reduction of swelling, prevention of infection, and repair of bone fractures, repair of lacerations or soft tissue injury, and reconstruction. The most common causes of facial trauma are sports, accidents, penetrating injuries, and violence.
Sinus Lift Procedure
In order to successfully place implants you need sufficient bone. In certain situations dentist need to perform specific procedures in order to create bone volume. One such procedure is sinus lift.
The maxillary sinuses are behind your cheeks and on top of the upper teeth. Sinuses are like empty rooms that have nothing at all in them. Some of the roots of the natural upper teeth extend up into the maxillary sinuses. When these upper teeth are removed, there is often just an egg shell thin wall of bone separating the maxillary sinus and the mouth. Dental implants need bone to hold them in place so when the sinus wall is very thin, it is impossible to place dental implants in this bone.
There is a solution called a sinus graft or sinus lift graft. The dental implant surgeon enters the sinus from the side above where the upper teeth used to be. The sinus membrane is then lifted upward and donor bone is inserted into the floor of the sinus. After several months of healing, the bone becomes part of the patient’s jaw and dental implants can be inserted and stabilized in this new sinus bone.
The sinus graft makes it possible for many patients to have dental implants when years ago there was no other option other than wearing loose denture”