What Is Reconstructive Jaw Surgery?
Reconstructive jaw surgery is surgery performed to rebuild the jaw after injury or to correct congenital birth defects involving the jaw. It is typically performed by a maxillofacial surgeon with special training in plastics and is done in an operating room. Recovery times for this procedure vary depending on how much reconstruction needs to be done, and several surgeries may be necessary in some cases to provide patients with the appropriate level of surgical reconstruction. Patients who experience trauma to the jaw may require emergency surgery. If a maxillofacial surgeon is available for this procedure, performing reconstructive jaw surgery immediately may be recommended, to correct problems with the jaw as quickly as possible. In other instances, patients may need to be stabilized first, and once they have recovered from the trauma, an additional procedure can be performed to fix the jaw.
