An oral and maxillofacial surgeon can treat many different cases that a general dentist would not. For example, an oral and maxillofacial surgeon can correct a cleft palate. They can also correct some cases of sleep apnea where repairing soft tissue or bone structure is the best way to correct a struggle to breathe deeply at night. This enables a person to get a better, more refreshing night’s rest. 

Of course, this skill is very important for many dentists’ teenage patients because so many young people have wisdom teeth positioned in such a way that they will never be able to erupt into a normal position. An oral and maxillofacial surgeon’s skill may be needed to remove bone in order to extract a firmly embedded wisdom tooth. 

This type of surgeon would also be skilled in performing bone grafts to build up the strength and thickness of bone in the jaw before dental implants are placed. These surgeons would also have the training needed to expertly place those implants. They would also be skilled in treating conditions like deeply abscessed teeth or bone infections which can only be cleaned out with surgical procedures. 

An oral and maxillofacial surgeon must complete additional education and practice before performing this type of surgery.

Our intention is to care for the dental and oral health of our nearby communities. If you have questions about this type of dentistry, please call us at (603) 647-2278.