Title: Oro-facial reconstruction and the myth of dental infections

Biography:

Jehad Al Sukhun is a British / Jordanian oral and maxillofacial surgeon with a Master’s degree in oral and maxillofacial surgery from the University of Manchester and a PhD from the University of London in the United Kingdom. He has gained a number of fellowships and professional memberships in the United States, United Kingdom and Australia. During his PhD studies at the University of London, he obtained in-depth knowledge and experience in maxillofacial Implantology and computer aided surgery using Finite Element Analysis. He worked at well reputed academic University Hospitals in the UK.

Abstract

Periapical infections / radiolucencies often suggest the presence of odontogenic pathosis, usually inflammatory granulomas or cysts. The high frequency of such lesions tends to lead clinicians to arrive at a diagnosis without completing a comprehensive assessment of the patient or carrying out the full range of available diagnostic tests. We present several rare cases of cancer lesions and their management, which were misdiagnosed and treated initially as periapical lesions because of its unusual location and clinical manifestations.

The goals of the repair of the maxillofacial skeleton defects are to restore its three-dimensional shape, contour and function. Approaches vary from conventional management of maxillofacial defects, resurfacing the inner cheek with a skin graft and obturating the palate and sinus with a prosthesis, to the use of free tissue transfer to reconstruct the defect. However, these approaches do not frequently result in acceptable functional and cosmetic results. Moreover, tissue-engineered grafts seem to appear on the horizon. This technique provides the use of a combination of cells, engineering and materials methods, and suitable biochemical and physio-chemical factors to repair and / or replace portions of or whole tissues . To date, the clinical application of tissue engineered grafts has been limited to few clinical situations. This paper reviews the literature and presents our experience, at several European University Hospitals, in reconstructing maxillofacial defects following ablative tumour surgery. The correct choice of the surgical technique depends on the skill, experience and judgment of the managing team.