Laughing and smiling are the two most effective and cost-free ways to reduce stress. A smile will generally relax your facial muscles as well as calm your nervous system. Laughing, on the other hand, has been proven to be the most effective way to relieve stress, lower blood pressure as well as boost a person's mood. It is impossible to keep your usual smile if you have teeth problems, an oral disease, or bone deterioration. That is why oral surgery is highly recommended to help you keep the smile. If you are experiencing a problem inside or around your mouth and face, treatment from the Encino Dentist could be what you need to fix your oral conditions.
What is Oral Surgery?
Medically, oral surgery refers to a branch of medicine that deals exclusively with diagnosis and treatment of all types of oral conditions that require surgical intervention. This is the part of medicine that caters for medical needs surroundings jaws and mouth structures, but only those that require surgery.
The American Dental Association defines Oral Surgery as oral and maxillofacial surgery. It is a specialty area that focuses mainly on the identification and treatment of injuries, diseases and any defects that relate to the functioning and general appeal of various facets of the mouth, jaws, teeth and the face in general. This is the area of the body that is referred to as the maxillofacial area.
Oral surgery comprises of a lot of things. If a person wants their teeth removed, or they have bone deterioration or any oral disease that requires corrective surgery, this would be the best treatment to receive. The surgery could be simple or complex, depending on the situation. Some of the most common forms of oral surgeries include removal of wisdom teeth, cancer treatment, and corrective jaw surgery, treatment for cleft lip palate and dental treatments among others. Note that oral surgery can be done on the neck, jaw or face, depending on where the actual problem is.
For these and more reasons, an oral surgeon will be a very important link to get from your primary healthcare providers. Whenever there is a problem with the functioning of your dental structure, for instance, if you have a problem overcoming congenital growth problems, keeping teeth or controlling severe oral problems, issues that go beyond aesthetics, an oral surgeon will be the most appropriate specialist you can seek a referral for.
Conditions that Require Treatment with Oral Surgery
There are various dental issues that would require the attention of an oral surgeon:
Placement of Dental Implants
A dental implant helps support a dental prosthesis such as a denture, crown, facial prosthesis or bridge. It could also be used as an orthodontic anchor. Working together with a restorative or cosmetic dentist, an oral surgeon could help with preparation and the placement of a patient's dental implantations. Oral surgeons have great skills that help them reconstruct bones in areas that require it for an implant to be placed. This will be necessary if there is a need to modify a person's gum tissues around the implantations, so as to produce an attractive appearance that is more natural.
Dental implants are important for a number of reasons including:
- Improving a person’s facial appearance. They are usually designed to merge with the bone permanently and so, they make you look like you actually own your teeth
- Dental implants will help improve a person’s speech. In their absence or in the presence of poorly fitted dentures, you may never get to speak properly. This is because your teeth can easily slip inside your mouth. Properly fitted dentures keep your teeth in place, allowing you to speak well and fluently
- Dental implants make a person more comfortable. They are designed to fit and become a part of you, taking away any discomfort you may experience with removable dentures
- Dental implants make eating easier. Removable dentures may slide, which could make it hard to chew but permanently fixed dentures will function just like your own teeth. This makes it easy for a person with the implants to enjoy all their favorite foods confidently and with no pain
Treatment of Facial Trauma
Any physical trauma to the face can be called facial trauma or maxillofacial trauma. Injuries on the face can be soft tissue injuries like burns, bruises, lacerations as well as fractures on facial bones like jaw and nasal fractures. Eye injuries can also be classified under facial trauma and also among the issues that oral surgeons deal with. Oral surgeons have great skills that enable them to effectively repair both minor and complex facial injuries such as those listed above.
There are many causes of facial trauma, with the most common ones being wounds, sports injuries, motorcycle, and car crashes and violence.
Evaluation of Pathological Conditions
There are several changes in the body tissues and organs that occur after an illness. Most of the conditions that result thereafter are pathological diseases that could result in disability or even death. Some of the pathological conditions that oral specialists treat include tumors on the face or mouth, benign cysts, malignant head, neck or oral cancer and serious infections such as infections in the jaws, salivary glands, neck, and oral cavity. The most common pathological condition that can be treated by an oral surgeon is mouth cancer, a condition that develops in any part of the mouth including gums, lips, the inner lining of the cheeks, tongue, the floor and roof of the mouth.
Alleviation of Facial Pain
There are several facial pain conditions that can be diagnosed and treated by an oral surgeon. These could include those that are caused by problems in the temporomandibular joints, the two joints that connect the jawbone to the skull. Depending on the symptoms you are experiencing, an oral surgeon will ask you for imaging readings of those joints or refer you to other medical and dental specialists to ensure that the problem you are experiencing is treated once and for good. The first recommendation will always be a non-surgical solution but if this is not sufficient, or the joint damage is serious, you will definitely need to see a dental surgeon.
Performance of Cosmetic and Reconstructive Surgery
Cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries are needed to correct facial bone, jaw, and problems with soft facial tissues. Problems that require reconstructive or cosmetic surgery are those that have come as a result of tumors, trauma or after removal of growths. The need for reconstructive surgery is to restore the form and the functioning of the maxillofacial part of the body. During treatment, skin, nerves, bones, and various tissues from different areas of the body may be sought to restructure the affected face or jaws.
Cosmetic and reconstructive surgery is usually done to correct any physical imperfections that could affect the way a person feels about him/herself and how others feel about him/her. In the end, you get a normal appearance that can give you back your self-confidence and let you enjoy a better quality of life.
Performance of Corrective Orthognathic/ Jaw Surgery
It is the work of oral surgeons to correct all minor and major dental jaw and skeletal anomalies to improve breathing, chewing and speaking. Jaw misalignment is brought about by several things including accidents, stress and dental misalignment. As a result, a person's chewing could be affected, as well as their speech and normal physiological functions like breathing. Partnering with orthodontists, dental surgeons are able to surgically reconstruct as well as realign the lower and upper jaws to the way they should, making it easy for you to function normally when biting and laughing as well as improve your physical appearance. In addition to this, an oral surgeon is able to correct all congenital defects on the skull and face including cleft palate and cleft lip.
Dentists, oral surgeons, and orthodontists must always work in collaboration to determine the right jaw surgery for a patient. However, it will be the oral surgeon who will, in the end, decide the right procedure to take.
Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder that causes a person’s breathing to stop and start again while they are sleeping. The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea, which occurs when a person’s throat muscles relax and block the airway intermittently, during sleep. If you are suspected to have such a sleep disorder, your dentists will recommend an overnight test called polysomnography, which monitors the way you sleep. If there is a problem, your dentist will always recommend the best treatment, depending on how mild or severe your apnea is. Sometimes non-surgical solutions could work, but if the problem is serious, a surgical procedure by an oral surgeon will be the best solution.
There are several surgeries that can be conducted to rectify sleep apnea:
- Maxillomandibular advancement, which is a surgical movement of both upper and lower jaws, done to open the upper air passage
- Uvulopalatopharyngoplasty is the surgical operation which stiffens and shortens the soft palate through partial removal of the uvula and the soft palate’s edge to correct a collapse in the airway
- Genioglossus advancement, is an operation that opens the breathing passage on the upper side through the tightening of the front tongue tendon, thereby reducing tongue dislodgment into the gullet
Benefits of Oral Surgery
Being the foundation of the human's facial structure, the jaw is what gives a person the aesthetic appearance they enjoy. If misaligned, whether recessing inwards or protruding outwards, the jaw can affect not just a person's appearance but their overall health. Jaw misalignment does not really sound like a harmful condition but people who have these kinds of abnormalities end up suffering emotionally and psychologically. It is a good thing that there are dental surgeons out there because a simple maxillofacial surgery is enough to improve the physical structure of the face and relieve some of the problems a person is experiencing. Above all, it can give you back your natural appeal for a better life.
In addition to that, here are some of the benefits one can get from oral surgery:
Improved speech: Misaligned jaw or teeth will definitely affect your speech but the problem is rectified when you get oral surgery. For a child, oral surgery will be urgently required, especially if the problem is diagnosed when they are learning to speak and to pronounce words. A delay in treatment can cause delayed milestone and affect the entire life of a child.
Better chewing: Misaligned jaw or teeth will also cause you problems when you chew or even swallow food. Correcting the jaw problem with surgery makes eating a lot easier. Sometimes the chewing is not affected so much but you could be experiencing pain while eating. This too is a problem that an oral surgeon can rectify.
Healed headaches: Most jaw and dental issues cause pain and headaches that go away immediately the problem is treated. A corrective jaw operation can, for instance, eliminate pain, requiring you to use fewer or zero pain medication.
Healed joint pain: Most of jaw and teeth issues come with chronic jaw pain that could deprive you of joy and productivity. Other than that, a misaligned jaw can keep your mouth open all the time, which causes a strain on your teeth and joints. Oral surgery is able to correct any problem that could be causing pressure on your jaw, teeth, and facial joints, making you enjoy great and normal comfort.
Improved sleep: A lot of people whose jaws are protruding outwards or recessing inwards breathe through their mouth. These people experience a lot of problems when breathing while sleeping. This is a problem that can be resolved with maxillofacial surgery. Example of these problems include sleep apnea; after an operation, you are able to enjoy adequate sleep and rest, which gives you more energy for a more productive life.
Whether you were born with it or you got it after an accident, a misaligned jaw is not a problem you would want to live with. Oral surgeons are here to offer corrective measures that can help your jaw to function better and give back your normal look.
Finding the Right Oral Surgeon
Oral surgery is very important for a person who wants to live a healthier, happier and more productive life. Finding the right oral surgeon is a guarantee that you will find the kind of treatment and relief you are seeking after the surgery. A little research could just be what you need to find the best surgeon but you need to consider your needs first, as they will be what will direct you to the right surgeon.
A lot of people are connected to their oral surgeons through their dentists, and others by their insurance companies. What is important is that the surgeon recommended to you must be specializing in the area you are interested in. Run a background investigation, to see how successful the surgeon is and seek out testimonials from his/her patients.
An online search today can also give you a long list of recommended oral surgeons to choose from. There are key considerations to make in choosing an oral surgeon:
Experience: this will tell you how long the oral surgeon you are interested in has been in practice. It is ideal to choose a surgeon who has many years of experience and built a successful professional practice. The more operations a surgeon has conducted, the more expertise they have in that area.
Competency: what skills does the oral surgeon have? What are his/her training and medical experience in the performance of the procedure you require? A higher level of training will be very important in this kind of practice.
The surgeon’s diagnosis and treatment plan: every condition has various options for treatment and correction, each of which has its own pros and cons. It is important to understand the proposed treatment for your condition before you consent to it. Ensure that all aspects of diagnosis and treatment are well explained to you for better decision-making.
The cost: dental surgery will obviously be an expensive treatment but the benefits will supersede the costs. However, you need to know how much it will cost you to have the surgery as well as additional costs incurred and the various acceptable payment methods provided by your surgeon. This will prepare you for payments and make it easy for you when the time comes to pay for the services.
Find an Encino Dentist Near Me
Oral surgery is a very important branch of dentistry which ensures that all kinds of oral conditions are treated. If you or your loved one is in need of oral surgical, an oral surgeon from Encino Dentist could be your best option as far as where treatment and services are concerned. We are a dedicated team that is committed to putting a smile back on the faces of people who are experiencing serious oral conditions that can only be corrected surgically. Call us at 818-650-0429 and let us treat you the right way.
