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About the Department of Adult and Pediatric Oral, Maxillofacial Surgery at University Hospital Erlangen
The Department of Adult and Pediatric Oral, Maxillofacial Surgery at the University Hospital Erlangen offers the full range of surgical treatment for diseases, traumatic injuries, functional disorders and deformities of the jaw, oral cavity, teeth and face. The department's doctors are also competent in facial plastic surgery, including facelift, blepharoplasty, otoplasty, rhinoplasty and scar revision in the maxillofacial area. The key areas of the department's clinical practice include the treatment of benign and malignant maxillofacial neoplasms, dysgnathia, diseases and injuries of the temporomandibular joint, correction of the maxillofacial malformations, as well as correction of the cleft lip and palate in children. The department successfully uses modern surgical techniques, which provide not only optimal therapeutic but also aesthetic results. An important part of the treatment is interdisciplinary collaboration with specialists in related medical fields. Many surgical interventions are performed on an outpatient basis, without compulsory hospitalization. There are 33 beds available for the accommodation of patients requiring inpatient treatment. The department's doctors annually admit more than 1,800 patients with various maxillofacial defects and pathologies. The department is headed by Prof. Dr. med. Marco Kesting.
Thanks to the advanced technical base and long experience of surgeons, the department successfully performs diagnostics and treatment of maxillofacial tumors. If the examination confirms the benign nature of the neoplasm, then specialists remove it (using minimally invasive surgical techniques, if possible) and recommend that the patient periodically undergo follow-up examinations. Should a malignant tumor be detected, oncologists, radiation therapists, radiologists and other specialists will be involved in the therapeutic process. They cooperatively study the results of preliminary examinations and develop an optimal treatment regimen during tumor boards. As a rule, patients with malignant maxillofacial tumors require surgery, which involves the total removal of the tumor and adjacent tissues. To destroy the remaining cancer cells in the body, doctors use chemotherapy, radiation therapy, immunotherapy and other treatment methods. In some cases, chemotherapy or radiation therapy may be carried out prior to surgery in order to reduce the volume of the tumor. In advanced stages of cancer, the patient receives palliative care aimed at relieving pain and improving quality of life. The surgical treatment of maxillofacial tumors is often followed by additional reconstructive interventions for aesthetic restoration of the affected areas. The department's surgeons specialize in plastic surgery with the patient's own tissues, skin grafting, dental restoration, implantation of special prostheses, etc. The team of the department's doctors applies all their professional skills to save the patient from cancer and at the same time maintain his attractive appearance.
One of the important focuses of the department's clinical activities is the repair of maxillofacial deformities. The department mostly admits patients with a cleft of the upper lip, alveolar ridge, hard and soft palate, underdevelopment of one of the halves of the lower jaw, anomalies of the frenulum of the lips and tongue. Such patients are treated by highly qualified doctors with long clinical experience. When correcting congenital maxillofacial malformations in children, pediatric surgeons, pediatricians and other specialists are involved in the therapeutic process. The most common and complex defect in young patients is complete cleft lip and palate. The isolated forms of the defect are also quite common. In this case, the child has only a cleft lip or only a cleft palate. The department's doctors recommend performing corrective interventions between the ages of 3 months and 1.5 years, depending on the severity of the developmental anomaly. In complex clinical cases, a two-stage surgical intervention may be required. The team of the department's doctors successfully applies modern surgical techniques, including plastic surgery with the patient's own tissues, bone grafting, rhinocheiloplasty, and reconstructive gnathic operations on the facial bones. The specialists set themselves the task of not only eliminating an aesthetic defect, but also relieving the child of functional disorders, problems with swallowing, breathing and pronunciation of sounds. As a rule, the operation is followed by a long period of retention, often requiring the wearing of retention devices. The department also employs experienced speech therapists and psychologists who help patients get rid of acquired pathological skills, correct speech and develop proper articulation.
The department's therapeutic options are supplemented by the treatment of dysgnathia, diseases of the temporomandibular joints and masticatory muscles, necrosis of the bones of the facial skull caused by intake of bisphosphonates, pathological changes in the oral mucosa and other diseases. In addition, the department's specialists, along with dentists, provide consultations to the patients who need dental implants, and perform all modern procedures in this field. The department's medical team applies all technical resources and their professional skills, helping patients to get rid of pathology and live a full life.
The department's range of surgical services includes:
- Outpatient surgery
- Dentoalveolar surgery (tooth extraction, including surgical extraction of a wisdom tooth)
- Jaw bone augmentation using the autologous tissues (patient's own tissues) or artificial material
- Removal of superficial skin tumors and closure of defects with skin grafts
- Removal of oral tumors
- Facelift
- Implantology
- Facial contouring surgery
- Laser skin resurfacing
- Lipofilling
- Liposuction
- Rhinoplasty
- Blepharoplasty
- Surgical correction of malformations
- Orthognathic surgery
- Otopexy
- Facial plastic surgery
- Removal of facial tattoos
- Preprosthetic surgery
- Septic surgery
- Surgery for injuries of the teeth and facial skull
- Cancer surgery of the mouth, jaw and face
- Treatment of root canals and root apex resection
- Inpatient surgery
- Surgical repair of maxillofacial deformities
- Dentoalveolar surgery
- Surgical interventions on the nerve endings in the mouth, jaw and face
- Surgical interventions for inflammatory processes in the oral cavity and maxillofacial area (septic surgery)
- Implantology
- Surgical interventions for temporomandibular joint diseases
- Correction of the abnormal jaw position
- Bone augmentation in the jaw area (preprosthetic surgery)
- Correction of the cleft lip and palate in children
- Facial plastic surgery
- Cancer surgery
- Interventions for maxillofacial injuries
- Other medical services
Curriculum vitae
Higher Education
- 1991 - 2003 Study of Dentistry and Human Medicine at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg.
- 2001 Thesis defense in Dentistry, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg. Subject: "Model of the effect of ear electric acupuncture on histamine-induced pruritus and alloknesis".
- 2005 Thesis defense in Human Medicine, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg. Subject: "Changes in the teeth, jaw and face in patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and spinal muscular atrophy."
- 2009 Habilitation, Technical University of Munich. Subject: "Squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity – innovative diagnostic and reconstructive methods".
Professional Career
- 03 - 04.1997 Clinical practice in Surgical Dentistry, St. Mary's Hospital, Cruzeiro do Sul-Acra, Brazil.
- 1998 - 2003 Clinical practice in Dentistry, Dr. Volker Ludwig & Kollegen Private Practice, Fuerth, Bavaria.
- 03 - 04.2000 Clinical practice in Surgical Dentistry, St. Mary's Hospital, Cruzeiro do Sul-Acra, Brazil.
- 10.2002 - 02.2003 Deputy Assistant, Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Zurich.
- 01.2004 - 06.2007 Research Fellow in the Department of Oral, Maxillofacial Surgery and Facial Plastic Surgery, Bochum-Langendreer Hospital of the Ruhr University Bochum.
- Since 07.2007 Research Assistant at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Rechts der Isar Munich.
- 02.2008 Board certification in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery.
- 04.2009 Habilitation in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and PD title.
- 06.2009 Senior Physician and Head of the Section of Cancer Reconstructive Facial Surgery in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Rechts der Isar Munich.
- 2010 Additional qualification in Plastic Surgery.
- 01 - 02.2011 Internship in the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University of Pretoria (South Africa).
- Since 08.2011 Managing Senior Physician and Deputy Head of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, University Hospital Rechts der Isar Munich.
- 09.2012 Member of the European Association for Cranio Maxillo Facial Surgery (EACMFS).
- 04.2015 Extraordinary Professorship.
- Since 01.10.2017 Head of the Department of Adult and Pediatric Oral, Maxillofacial Surgery at the University Hospital Erlangen.
Clinical Focuses
- Cancer surgery.
- Reconstructive surgery.
- Traumatology.
Research Focuses
- Oncoplastic surgery.
- Biomaterials.
- Treatment of diseases of the oral cavity.
Awards and Honors
- 2009 Best Habilitation of the Year, Technical University of Munich.
- 2011 Innovation Award for Autologous Dental Transplant Medicine, Technical University of Munich.
- 2011 Chirurgie begreifen Scientific Prize of the German Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (formerly, Martin Bassmund Prize).
- 2014 Ruth Erwig Innovation Award of the German Society of Surgery, "Human Amniotic Membrane as an Innovative Biomaterial in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery: Fundamental Researches and Clinical Results".
- 2015 Wrigley Prophylaxe Award of the German Society for Restorative Dentistry.
Board Member and Memberships in Scientific Societies
- Vice President of the European Plastic Surgery Research Council (EPSRC).
- Delegate of the German Society for Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (DGMKG) in the Section of Surgical Researches of the German Society of Surgery (DGCh).
- German Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (DGMKG).
- Working Group on Oral Surgery of the German Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (DGMKG).
- European Association for Cranio Maxillo Facial Surgery (EACMFS).
- German-Austrian-Swiss Research Group for Tumours in the Maxillary and Facial Regions (DÖSAK)
- Anatomical Association (AA).
Photo of the doctor: (c) Universitätsklinikum Erlangen