Outlook for Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery

[Med1992]

Hey all, I'm not an actual user of these forums (I'm using a friend's).

I'm a third year dental student and am strongly considering specializing in Oral & Maxillofacial surgery, and it has been my dream for a while.

My question is:

-I read on these forums people saying general dentists and periodontists are taking away a lot of business from OMFS by doing their own implants, extractions, etc. I've also read many saying that, to make ends meet, they have to travel long distances to general dentist offices to work for them. Does this mean OMS's are losing a lot of money/its not as profitable or that it's a "dying" field?

-Also, I know I want to live in a large metropolitan area (I've lived in a rural place for 22+ years), so how will all of this play out?

This whole thing is really stressing me out! Any help is appreciated

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Sublimazing]

Hey all, I'm not an actual user of these forums (I'm using a friend's).

I'm a third year dental student and am strongly considering specializing in Oral & Maxillofacial surgery, and it has been my dream for a while.

My question is:

-I read on these forums people saying general dentists and periodontists are taking away a lot of business from OMFS by doing their own implants, extractions, etc. I've also read many saying that, to make ends meet, they have to travel long distances to general dentist offices to work for them. Does this mean OMS's are losing a lot of money/its not as profitable or that it's a "dying" field?

-Also, I know I want to live in a large metropolitan area (I've lived in a rural place for 22+ years), so how will all of this play out?

This whole thing is really stressing me out! Any help is appreciated

This has been asked and answered here before.

OMFS isn't going anywhere. It may not be as easy as it had been in yester-year to have a private practice in an urban area, but it's still doable. Just like general dentistry, you're going to make more money if you leave the city...but there are still associate positions everywhere.

Others have commented that the world of Thirds and Implants is in fact being redistributed, so you may have to do some of the other procedures in the immensely broad scope of OMFS, but if you love OMFS you shouldn't consider that a bad thing.

You're going to make more than a general dentist as an OMFS...but like people always say, don't go into a field based solely on the compensation you have to like what you're doing.

Now go study for the CBSE.

 

[Doctorman45342]

I recently shadowed an OMFS. He told me how he still swimming in debt, 4 years after he completed his residency. It is definitely a long road and you will probably not be compensated the same way as general dentists and other specialties are until later in your career but if you love the idea of doing surgery on people go ahead. There is a lot of wisdom teeth and implants but OMFSs can do some amazing reconstructive surgeries. I will be shadowing him this summer in the OR, should be pretty sweet!

 

[Med1992]

Thanks for the replies! I'm real fortunate because my parents insisted on footing the whole dental school bill for me, so I'm coming out without debt. Both my parents are surgeons as well, just MD ones and not OMS, so they know nothing about dentistry.

But glad to know it'll still be a well-compensated and stable field in the future.

 

[Mattthias]

Thanks for the replies! I'm real fortunate because my parents insisted on footing the whole dental school bill for me, so I'm coming out without debt. Both my parents are surgeons as well, just MD ones and not OMS, so they know nothing about dentistry.

But glad to know it'll still be a well-compensated and stable field in the future.

I hope you realize how fortunate you are.

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

GP I shadowed does extractions and implants I think, but then again, my personal Dentist referred to an OMFS for my brother's wisdom teeth extraction. I know that if I become a Dentist, I would want to do some continuing education so I would have to refer less and get to do a greater variety of work than just fillings and crowns.

 

[Cold Front]

I do my oral surgery, only refer out full bony (about 1 or 2 of 100 new patients). No general dentist should do anything beyond this, as it would mean higher risk for patients, and doctors who lack the experience being sued. I have seen
patients who have permanent parasthesia due to wisdom teeth Extractions.... And they were done by oral surgeons. It must be difficult to go sleep knowing you did that to someone, even if you are an oral surgeon.

Oral surgery is going no where, someone has to do those things.

 

[Silent Cool]

I do my oral surgery, only refer out full bony (about 1 or 2 of 100 new patients). No general dentist should do anything beyond this, as it would mean higher risk for patients, and doctors who lack the experience being sued. I have seen
patients who have permanent parasthesia due to wisdom teeth Extractions.... And they were done by oral surgeons. It must be difficult to go sleep knowing you did that to someone, even if you are an oral surgeon.

Oral surgery is going no where, someone has to do those things.

CF,

How often do you come across permanent paresthesia due to wisdom tooth extraction?

 

[Shunwei]

I do my oral surgery, only refer out full bony (about 1 or 2 of 100 new patients). No general dentist should do anything beyond this, as it would mean higher risk for patients, and doctors who lack the experience being sued. I have seen
patients who have permanent parasthesia due to wisdom teeth Extractions.... And they were done by oral surgeons. It must be difficult to go sleep knowing you did that to someone, even if you are an oral surgeon.

Oral surgery is going no where, someone has to do those things.

I agree, in fact I would add partial bony to the list. I do them sometimes and I am good at it but it makes me uneasy anytime I go close to the lingual nerve. I strongly discourage GPs getting too greedy and start hogging everything. Specialists exist for good reasons and in a decent practice there should be more than enough to do without having to desperately hold onto the 3rds.

Now, if someone were to refer out surgical extractions of blown out non-3rds and normal molar endos, well, that's a different story . . . .

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

I do my oral surgery, only refer out full bony (about 1 or 2 of 100 new patients). No general dentist should do anything beyond this, as it would mean higher risk for patients, and doctors who lack the experience being sued. I have seen
patients who have permanent parasthesia due to wisdom teeth Extractions.... And they were done by oral surgeons. It must be difficult to go sleep knowing you did that to someone, even if you are an oral surgeon.

Oral surgery is going no where, someone has to do those things.

Bony? Are you talking about bone graphs?

 

[yappy]

heh. @Shunwei

I've seen some GP who try to do everything including sedation, bone grafts, comprehensive ortho, and implants. It was scary how limited their knowledge in these areas of dentistry was, that typically fell on specialists, after I started asking a few questions & observing them work. Luckily medicine isn't practiced this way; I wonder how long dentistry will be?

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

heh. @Shunwei

I've seen some GP who try to do everything including sedation, bone grafts, comprehensive ortho, and implants. It was scary how limited their knowledge in these areas of dentistry was, that typically fell on specialists, after I started asking a few questions & observing them work. Luckily medicine isn't practiced this way; I wonder how long dentistry will be?

Excuse me if I'm wrong, but I didn't think that GP's doing implants was that rare of an occurrence? I don't know about the bone grafts and sedation though......

 

[Cold Front]

Bony? Are you talking about bone graphs?

Full bony.

 

[dadmd405]

I know ranking is what is most important, but anyhow I am starting dental school this fall and would like to mentally prepare myself for the kind of GPA I need. So what is typically the GPA of those in the top 5 of their class? Do I need to be breaking 3.75 every semester?

Have mercy on me & my #freshmanquestion! hehe

 

[Sublimazing]

I know ranking is what is most important, but anyhow I am starting dental school this fall and would like to mentally prepare myself for the kind of GPA I need. So what is typically the GPA of those in the top 5 of their class? Do I need to be breaking 3.75 every semester?

Have mercy on me & my #freshmanquestion! hehe

I can forgive your double post here and in the residents section...i cannot forgive your use of a hashtag, emoticon and "hehe" in one sentence

 

[dadmd405]

I can forgive your double post here and in the residents section...i cannot forgive your use of a hashtag, emoticon and "hehe" in one sentence

Well... get over it.

 

[maxilofacial]

I know ranking is what is most important, but anyhow I am starting dental school this fall and would like to mentally prepare myself for the kind of GPA I need. So what is typically the GPA of those in the top 5 of their class? Do I need to be breaking 3.75 every semester?

Have mercy on me & my #freshmanquestion! hehe

Just aim for the top.

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

Just aim for the top.

Reminds me of some Disney movie or something......... "Pursue you dreams! Follow your heart! Go for the gold!"

 

[bigstix808]

GP I shadowed does extractions and implants I think, but then again, my personal Dentist referred to an OMFS for my brother's wisdom teeth extraction. I know that if I become a Dentist, I would want to do some continuing education so I would have to refer less and get to do a greater variety of work than just fillings and crowns.

i think there is a line where some GP's like to dance on when it comes to doing "specialist's" work. i mean, i do many of my own thirds (impacted or not), i do some molar endo (very rare i go past 1st molar), and i dont do any ortho (considering doing invisalign though). what i'm getting at is this… i know i have the ability to much of the work the specialist do, but where i feel a specialist separates them selves from a GP is, SPEED, sedation (OS, endo, perio), and just general expertise in their field (they see more crazy ish than a GP does … period!). i do much of my surgery because i just like doing it. i get faster each time, and i take CE on a regular basis in order to enhance my knowledge in the subject matter. my molar endo takes me a bit of time, but i learn more each time i do it. many GP's like to "keep it in the practice" for money, for pt request, for ease of appt for a pt. i look at many procedures i do as a "time vs money" theory. "can my specialist do this procedure faster/better?" so i can focus on my GP procedures that pay the bills (crowns, bridge, and removable -- removable is a gold mine for those of you in rural USA), and can i keep my pt happy to where they will come back to see me.

long story short … specialist … any of them … aren't going anywhere! if you ask me, $ for $, hr for hr … specialist make more based on procedures alone. GP's kill it from a business stand point. it all depends on what you want to focus on. if you're procedure driven and want to make cash, specialize. if you're kick ass in the business world… be a GP get a a ton a associates, have multiple offices and make 2 mil a year. its up to you what you want to do.

 

[Gregor Wiesmann]

i think there is a line where some GP's like to dance on when it comes to doing "specialist's" work. i mean, i do many of my own thirds (impacted or not), i do some molar endo (very rare i go past 1st molar), and i dont do any ortho (considering doing invisalign though). what i'm getting at is this… i know i have the ability to much of the work the specialist do, but where i feel a specialist separates them selves from a GP is, SPEED, sedation (OS, endo, perio), and just general expertise in their field (they see more crazy ish than a GP does … period!). i do much of my surgery because i just like doing it. i get faster each time, and i take CE on a regular basis in order to enhance my knowledge in the subject matter. my molar endo takes me a bit of time, but i learn more each time i do it. many GP's like to "keep it in the practice" for money, for pt request, for ease of appt for a pt. i look at many procedures i do as a "time vs money" theory. "can my specialist do this procedure faster/better?" so i can focus on my GP procedures that pay the bills (crowns, bridge, and removable -- removable is a gold mine for those of you in rural USA), and can i keep my pt happy to where they will come back to see me.

long story short … specialist … any of them … aren't going anywhere! if you ask me, $ for $, hr for hr … specialist make more based on procedures alone. GP's kill it from a business stand point. it all depends on what you want to focus on. if you're procedure driven and want to make cash, specialize. if you're kick ass in the business world… be a GP get a a ton a associates, have multiple offices and make 2 mil a year. its up to you what you want to do.

So sorry if I jumped to a conclusion here, but would you say that a GP Dentist is still a lucrative career choice? Can I PM you with some questions?

 

[bigstix808]

So sorry if I jumped to a conclusion here, but would you say that a GP Dentist is still a lucrative career choice? Can I PM you with some questions?

abosultely it is. if you can learn the business, and dont be cheap on the person that answers your phone.