Department Spotlight: Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
As OMFS has evolved over the years, clinical excellence remains a top priority.
The department of oral and maxillofacial surgery at the University of Florida College of Medicine – Jacksonville comprises six full-time faculty members, 19 residents and three fellows. In addition, the department includes 30 other employees in various administrative, managerial, clinical and supportive positions.
Tirbod Fattahi, M.D., D.D.S., is chair of the department of oral and maxillofacial surgery at UF COMJ.
The history of the department dates back to 1967, when the first oral surgery resident graduated from what was then Duval Medical Center. Since that time, the department has undergone significant changes. Initially part of the UF College of Dentistry in Gainesville, the division of oral and maxillofacial surgery, or OMFS, served as a regional arm of the OMFS training program on UF’s main campus. This continued until 2001, when — under the leadership of Barry Steinberg, M.D., Ph.D., D.D.S. — the division severed its relationship with Gainesville and became a division within the department of surgery at the UF College of Medicine – Jacksonville. In 2011, the division became a department.
Educational programs
During the past few years, the OMFS department has gained significant national and international recognition and now features one of the top training programs in the country. The department welcomes three residents each year into its six-year residency program, which Salam Salman, M.D., D.D.S., directs. These three training spots are some of the most sought-after positions in our specialty.
Salam Salman, M.D., D.D.S.
The department also has two fellowship programs: head and neck oncologic surgery and microvascular, directed by Rui Fernandes, M.D., D.M.D.; and pediatric maxillofacial and craniofacial surgery, directed by Steinberg.
Over the past 10 years, more than 40 percent of our graduating residents and fellows have pursued academic OMFS positions throughout the United States. This is an incredibly high number considering that 99 percent of all OMFS graduates in the country pursue private practice after training.
Keys to our department’s success include the tremendous institutional support we receive from UF Health Jacksonville and college leadership and the expertise of our faculty, who are all board-certified. Faculty members practice at UF Health Jacksonville and UF Health North, where they perform all forms of contemporary oral, maxillofacial, head and neck surgery.
Following are details about some of those procedures:
Rui Fernandes, M.D., D.M.D.
Barry Steinberg, M.D., Ph.D., D.D.S.
Facial cosmetic surgery
Aesthetic facial surgery to rejuvenate appearance is commonly requested and performed. We perform these procedures — along with noninvasive cosmetic procedures, such as Botox injections, dermal fillers, chemical peels, lasers, etc. — at UF Health North.
Head and neck cancer and microvascular reconstruction
We devote considerable amounts of time and resources to the contemporary management of head and neck cancer and pathology. This includes skin malignancies, such as melanoma, basal and squamous cell cancers; salivary gland disease; benign and malignant tumors of the oral cavity, head and neck; and cervical endocrine surgery, which includes the thyroid and parathyroid.
Reconstruction can include the creation of a new tongue, lips, jaw bone, intraoral lining and skin coverage, as well as immediate dental implants to facilitate swallowing and speech. As the only location in Northeast Florida that offers immediate ablative and reconstructive surgery in a single operation, we allow patients to return to normal daily function soon afterward with improved quality of life.
Sleep apnea surgery
Obstructive sleep apnea, or OSA, is an increasingly common occurrence in many of our patients. While medical management is key in the overall treatment, many patients with moderate to severe OSA benefit from maxillomandibular advancement surgery. In this innovative procedure, the upper and lower jaws, as well as the chin bone, are moved anteriorly — 10 mm, on average — to increase the posterior airway space. This change leads to improved ventilation, tissue perfusion and reduced snoring.
Pediatric craniofacial surgery
OMFS faculty who practice at UF Health Jacksonville and Wolfson Children’s Hospital manage congenital pediatric deformities, such as cleft lip, cleft palate and skull deformities, as well as pediatric pathology. Steinberg performs all of these surgeries, many of which are done in conjunction with UF Health Pediatric Neurosurgery. In addition to treating the region’s pediatric population, Steinberg travels to Vietnam annually to provide humanitarian services for children in need of cleft and craniofacial care.
Jaw restoration and implant surgery
Contemporary implant restoration of the oral cavity and jaws is an integral part of our outpatient practice. With the aid of navigational surgery and virtual surgical planning, our surgeons easily and predictably restore oral functions, such as chewing solid foods, swallowing, talking and smiling.
Management of facial trauma
The OMFS department provides comprehensive, 24/7 coverage of head, neck and facial trauma at UF Health Jacksonville, which has the region’s only adult and pediatric Level I trauma center. We are the only service line providing this level of care in the management of facial trauma and, as such, are proud to support our emergency medicine and acute care surgery colleagues. Contemporary maxillofacial trauma management has been the backbone of our department for a number of years and we remain fully committed to continuing this invaluable service.
Research and scholarly projects
With the development of a research office and a dedicated research manager, our department’s faculty, residents and fellows are now more involved in research-related endeavors. There are 31 ongoing projects, of which 11 are interdepartmental. In 2018, our faculty were closely tied to nine peer-reviewed manuscripts that were accepted for publication.
Since the late 1960s, a lot of changes and improvements have been made regarding oral and maxillofacial surgery at the college. Today, clinical excellence remains a top priority, as is educating the future generations of OMFS surgeons. We look forward to continuing to serve our patients and colleagues.
For more information about our department, email tirbod.fattahi@jax.ufl.edu or visit our website.
