ORAL AND MAXILLOFACIAL PATHOLOGY
Oral and maxillofacial pathology also known as oral pathology is a branch of dentistry in which your dental care provider will diagnose and study the causes and effects of diseases affecting the oral and maxillofacial region or mouth, jaws, face, salivary glands and related structures.
Oral pathology is also a closely allied specialty with oral surgery and oral medicine.
The inside lining of your mouth is usually pink and smooth; if there is any change in its color or texture like white or red
patches, lumps, bumps, sores that bleed easily and take longer time to heal, thickening inside your mouth or any other
abnormality it might signal a pathology and might be a sign of an underlying disease as serious as cancer.
The dentist or any other healthcare provider will refer the Patients who might have certain conditions or symptoms to the
department of oral pathology; here the technician will do the complete oral screening of the patient which also includes
reviewing x-rays, performing soft tissue and bone biopsies to properly diagnose an infection, tumor or any other condition or disease.
A biopsy is removal of small piece of a suspicious tissue surgically for its microscopic examination, which are usually
taken in the dental office under local anesthesia to determine whether it is in malignant or premalignant stage, or is it due to any virus, bacteria or fungus or if there is any other cause for proper diagnosis and its treatment planning.]