What is Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery ?

Oral andMaxillofacial surgery is a specialty within dentistry uniquely devoted to performing surgery of the oral cavity, jaws, facial and head/neck areas.

In addition to a four year dental school education, oral and maxillofacial surgeons complete a minimum of four years of postgraduate surgical residency in  a hospital-based training program, with rotations in internal medicine, general surgery,  other related medical disciplines, as well as extensive training in IV sedation and general anesthesia.

Oral and maxillofacial surgeons perform a wide range of procedures ranging from:

1. - removal of impacted wisdom teeth, other dental extractions, to
   

2. - replacement of missing teeth with dental implants 
   

3. - exposure of impacted teeth and other procedures for orthodontic purposes
   

4. - orthodontic surgical correction of the occlusion (how teeth meet together)
   

5. - corrective jaw surgery (for large or small jaws)
   

6. - biopsy and removal of growths in the oral and facial region
   

7. - repair of traumatic injuries of the  mouth and facial region
   

8. - diagnosis and surgery of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) to help
   

           problems of joint pain, clicking, and limited opening

1. - grafting  and reconstruction of soft tissue and bone defects resulting
   

           from trauma or pathologic conditions

1. - and others
   

Many procedures are performed very comfortably with local anesthesia, 

or, depending on the procedure or patients’ individual apprehension or

needs, other safely-performed anesthesia options are available, such as IV sedation or deep sedation/general anesthesia.

Other more complex or  advanced  procedures are performed in a hospital setting, if needed or desired.  Dr. Mufson maintains staff privileges at Aventura Medical Center, Hollywood Memorial Regional Hospital and Joe DiMaggio Children’s  Hospital.