What constitutes a facial reconstructive surgery?

Before anything, it must be explained that facial reconstructive surgery is not the same as facial cosmetic surgery, explains award-winning facial plastic surgeon Dr. Dean Toriumi. The latter is done to reshape the face, head, and neck’s normal contours for the purpose of improving both appearance and self-esteem.

Image source: mayoclinic.org

Image source: summitmedicalgroup.com

Reconstructive surgery, on the other hand, is performed to correct abnormal facial structures caused by issues like trauma, infection, injury, disease, birth defects, or developmental abnormalities. That being said, facial reconstructive surgery is generally done to improve the quality of life of a patient, who will benefit from both a more normal appearance and the improved function of the reconstructed area.

Procedures for various reconstructive procedures are done by a head and neck surgeon or otolaryngologist. These procedures include facial trauma reconstruction to correct facial fractures or lacerations that may be the result of vehicular accidents, fights, and animal bites that affect the eye socket, brow, jawbone, and cheekbone. Another is cleft lip repair, which is the surgical correction of the cleft lip birth deformity. The procedure is typically performed during a child’s first three to six months.

According to Dr. Dean Toriumi, the other common types of facial reconstructive surgery are microtia repair (for congenital missing ear), scar revision for hiding facial scars, facial paralysis (which improves facial deformity due to facial paralysis caused by, say, a stroke), and cancer reconstruction (which repairs facial cancer defects with the transfer of muscle, skin, or bone from a different part of the body).



Dr. Dean Toriumi is a Professor and Director of Resident Research in the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery at the University of Illinois in Chicago. Visit this blog for related reviews of facial plastic surgery procedures.