Facial trauma can be defined as a physical trauma to the face. Some of the most common examples include injuries to soft tissue such as laceration, burns, and bruises, injury to the eye, factures of jaw, fractures of facial bones, and nasal fractures.
A facial trauma usually produces injury to the following regions:
Soft tissue – Skin, subcutaneous tissue or any underlying muscle
Maxilla – Upper jaw
Orbit – Eye socket
Zygoma – Cheek bone
Mandible – Lower jaw
Nasoethmoid orbital skeleton – Central face, joint of bones starting from the nose, orbitis, maxilla and cranium
After an accident or any other type of trauma to face, the initial step is to treat any life threatening injuries. Doctors emphasize on stabilizing the patient. A severe injury to the central face and lower part of the face usually leads to blockage in airway due to excess bleeding or loose bone fragments. Hence, the main focus should be to deal with these issues prior to treating facial injuries.
Once the necessary initial treatment is given to the patient and he/she is declared out of danger, the doctor may consider craniofacial reconstruction. This surgery is aimed at restoring full function and rectifies functional and cosmetic damage done to the face.
Dr. Varkarakis uses Craniofacial Reconstruction to rectify or reshape the face, skull, and jaw to deal with injury/damage resulting from a traumatic accident. The procedure may vary from one patient to the other. The right type of treatment option is determined by the type and severity of the injuries.
The procedure starts by mapping out a detailed plan for reconstruction surgery. The surgeon will diagnose and assess the injuries. Dr. Varkarakis uses requisite tools such as X-rays and digital tomography. These are helpful in developing a detailed ‘map’ of patient’s facial structure for assessing the actual damage and determining the best treatment option.
Our team of experienced surgeons will use the information to develop a plan to repair and reconstruct facial damage. The plan may include any or a combination of the following depending on a case:
A facial reconstructive surgery is complex and extensive. Most patients require several surgeries to get results. Dr. Varkarakis is a specialist in repairing facial damage. He holds many years of experience in helping patients returning to normal appearance. However, it is suggested that patients have realistic expectations. The final facial appearance may still be different than prior to the traumatic event. Patients may expect improved appearance. Some additional surgeries may be performed to get results closer to the desired appearance.
It takes around three months for patients to heal completely from craniofacial reconstruction. During this period, patients may experience swelling while the face heals. Dr. Varkarakis recommends his patients to follow all postoperative instructions to expedite recovery.
For more information on facial trauma treatment or scheduling a consultation session, get in touch with plastic and reconstructive surgeon Dr. Varkarakis at 305-853-8333.
