What is craniomaxillofacial surgery?
Craniomaxillofacial surgery is a highly specialized branch of plastic surgery, which focuses on all aspect of complicated facial and skull reconstruction. Patients who need a craniomaxillofacial surgeon include children with cleft lip/palate, craniosynostosis, or other facial malformations
and adults who have undergone tumor ablative surgery involving the skull, or victims of trauma whose facial skeleton has been severely disrupted by the injury. A craniomaxillofacial surgeon also treats complex soft tissue problems such as hemangiomas, vascular malformations, facial tumors, Bell's
palsy and severe facial scarring. He or she is also uniquely qualified to treat post cosmetic surgery problems such as the secondary rhinoplasty deformity or eyelid ectropions. Even the treatment of some speech problems caused by stroke can be addressed by a well-trained craniomaxillofacial surgeon and their associated team. Lastly, craniomaxillofacial surgery includes the treatment of basic and complex jaw problems including tumors, TMJ disorders, and abnormal growth patterns requiring mandibular and maxillary
reconstruction
Any good craniofacial surgeon will belong to or lead a craniofacial team. The team should be approved and recognized by the American Cleft Palate Association, which upholds the standards for cleft and craniofacial surgical care. Patients should also look for a craniomaxillofacial surgeon who belongs to such a team because these individuals frequently have a high volume practice which is constantly undergoing an internal review by the other members of the team. Without this type of internal review, quality care is not guaranteed.
A craniofacial team should include:
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craniomaxillofacial surgeon who is dedicated to this work.
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a Neuro surgeon
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an orthodontist
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a dentist
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an otolaryngologist
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a speech therapist
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a geneticist
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social work and or team psychologist
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ophthalmology
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hand surgery- to treat patient with combined head and hand problems
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podiatry or some type of foot surgeon- for combined problems
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a nurse coordinator and feeding specialist.
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craniofacial, interventional, and neuroradiology
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pediatric
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oncology
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radiation therapy
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prosthodontics
Such a team will provide the multidisciplinary care of patients with craniomaxillofacial problems in order to obtain optimal results. This type of coordinated care also allows patients to see multiple physicians during a single visit. When a patient comes to a craniofacial team, the nurse coordinator will arrange for the patient to see all doctors who need to evaluate a problem. Then, at the end of the visit, the entire team will discuss the patient's problem and generate a concise and focused treatment plan which will optimize care. This type of focused care prevents miscommunication between referring physicians and ensures the patient will have a clear idea of what each doctor involved feels is the best treatment plan.
A good craniofacial team also collects and analyzes patient data, and presents this data at national meetings. In this way, the team is able to discuss their treatment method with other leading centers around the world, making sure they are providing state of the art therapy to their patients.
The craniofacial team, under the guidance of Dr's
Stelnicki at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital, and
the cleft team at Chris Evert Children's Hospital meets all these requirements. To contact our team please call
at the Cleft and Craniofacial Office: (954)983-1899 or contact
Bobby Brasher at (954) 986-6314
All initial patient visits are arranged through our nurse coordinator. Please plan to spend at least half a day with us on your first visit so that we can give you a full and thorough evaluation. Also, please bring with you any copies of old medical records or X-rays which may be helpful to our evaluation.
1. Craniosynostosis ans Craniosynostosis syndromes:
Craniosynostosis is defined as the premature closure of the cranial sutures (see photo). The premature closure of these sutures, or what some people call soft spots, results in restricted and abnormal growth of the head. This restriction is frequently associated with eye and ear problems. Occasionally, defects with hands, feet, mouth, spine, heart, and kidneys are also seen. In some cases, this condition is part of a genetic syndrome. What this means is that the patient will have a certain appearance or phenotype which allows a geneticist to classify the constellation of problems. Recent advances in molecular biology around the country have determined that in many of these syndromes there are defects in specific regions of the patients DNA which are associated with this
problem. Click here
to visit the NIDCR homepage. An example is a defect in a growth factor receptor in the developing head called the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR). There are several subclasses of this receptor that, when altered, lead to
craniosynostosis syndromes such as Apert's and Crouzon's. Our team
is one of the few in the country specializing in Endoscopic
Craniosynostosis repair. This minimally invasive surgery is used for
help correcting several types of craniosynostosis with less scarring and
without the need for metal plates & screws.
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