Maxillofacial (or facial) trauma is physical trauma caused to the face. This covers fractures of the bones like the jaw and nose, burns and lacerations to soft tissue and trauma to the eye. These can cause pain, swelling and disfigurement. As the face is the most openly viewed part of the body, disfigurement to it can cause deep depression and a host of psychological issues. Quality of life is impacted both on the physical and the emotional level. Trauma to the face can also be life-threatening since it can impact the airways.
Facial injuries are of several types. They range from severe injuries to the skin and bones of the face to severe tooth injury. They are classified as bony injuries (fractures), soft tissue injuries (skin and gums) and injuries to special regions (eyes, salivary glands, facial nerves and so on).
Some of the most common causes of injuries to the face are automobile accidents and violence.
Orofacial cancers affect the face and oral cavity of the human body. There are a number of types of cancer which affect this region of the body. Mouth cancer, as is now well known, is fairly widespread in India due to the popular use of chewing tobacco. Oral cancer has a whole range of symptoms from pain, ulcers which do not heal, lesions, dysphagia and so on. Treatment is decided in consultation with the patient’s oncologist. When surgery is required to excise the tumour it may cause damage to the facial structure, resulting in disfigurement.
The maxillofacial surgeons work closely with oncologists and plastic surgeons to excise the tumour and reconstruct the facial structure in order to give the patient the most healthy quality of life possible.
