Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is the specialty of Dentistry that concentrates on the diagnosis and surgical management of oral and maxillofacial pathologic conditions, including epithelial diseases and mesenchymal disorders of soft and hard tissues.

Because Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is a surgical specialty it is easiest to define its spectrum by reviewing the types of surgery its specialists perform:

• * Dento-alveolar surgery, including extraction of teeth, recontouring of alveolar bone, and uncovering of teeth for orthodontic traction.
  
  
• * Surgery to support oral and facial prosthetic devices, including bony and soft tissue surgery to create favorable anatomy for dentures, interosseous implants to retain oral prostheses and facial prostheses such as alloplastic ears, noses, and eyes.
  
  
• * Surgical removal of soft tissue and bony tumors of odontogenic and other origins.
  
  
• * Orthognathic Surgery, which is surgery to reposition cheek and orbital bones, nasal structures, upper and lower jaws and chin. This is generally done in conjunction with orthodontic movement of the teeth, but is also done to facilitate placement of prosthetic devices.
  
  
• Reconstruction of congenital, developmental, post-trauma, post-tumor, or aging related defects in oro-facial tissues, including forehead-temporal regions and more anterior and inferior facial structures. Cosmetic surgery is included in this scope, and includes surgery of the forehead, brows, eyelids, ears, facial skin, and neck.
  
  
• Trauma surgery for trauma of the head, neck, and facial areas. In the case of complex multi-system trauma, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons function as members of multi-specialty teams which include Emergency Room Doctors, General Surgeons, and other surgical sub-specialists, such as Neurosurgery, Ophthalmology, Otolaryngology, and Plastic Surgery.
  
  
• Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ) surgery for functional or inflammatory disorders of the joint soft tissues, bony disorders such as osteoarthritis or ankylosis, or TMJ tumors.
  
  
• In conjunction with many outpatient surgeries, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons deliver intravenous sedation and some types of general anesthesia to manage patient anxieties and improve patient comfort. Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons receive more training in the delivery of these services than any other type of doctors except Anesthesiologists.

Most Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons are self-employed and work in a practice setting which has features of both dental and medical offices.

• Like most dental offices, their clinics have outpatient operating rooms. In addition, their surgical rooms often contain complex anesthetic monitoring equipment.
  
  
• Like medical clinics, their clinics typically have simpler examination rooms and many supporting personnel, including nurses and insurance clerks who understand medical [and dental] insurance.

A large percentage of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Practices are Partnerships or Professional Corporations that have two or more surgeons.

• The most common type of practice has two surgeons who are sharing business expenses as employer-employee, equal partners, or as employees of a small practice corporation. Other Oral and Maxillofacial groups are composed of three to six individuals.
  
  
• Some surgeons work as sub-specialists in a large dental group practice that includes General Practitioners and other dental sub-specialists, such as Endodontists, Periodontists, or Prosthodontists. Military dental practice functions in this way, as do some civilian practices in many large cities.
  
  
• Other Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons are employed in institutional practices. Full time faculty who are teaching in Dental Schools and OMS Residencies are included in this group. Less commonly, OMS specialists participate as sub-specialists in large medical groups.

Almost all Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons in the United States graduate from Dental School in the U.S. or Canada.

In the summer between their Junior and Senior year of Dental School they apply for training in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery using the PASS unified application system. You can access it at http://www.adea.org/PASS/pass.html. They are selected for training through the MATCH system. The MATCH can be accessed at http://www.natmatch.com. Although many Dental Subspecialty Programs do not participate in the national MATCH process, virtually all OMS Programs do.

Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residency training requires four to seven years of intensive medical and surgical didactic and clinical training. The longer programs incorporate formal M.D. training in a medical school. Those Residencies are called Integrated Degree Programs or Double-Degree Programs. An M.D. degree is not required to practice as an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon, but may be required for certain types of post-Residency Fellowship training.

For more details on the format of Oral and Maxillofacial Residency Training at the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio, please refer to the About the Program section of this Website.