Pedicled Buccal Fat Pad Grafts And Osteonercosis

I have been using pedicled buccal fat flaps for closure of oral–sinus (oral-antral) openings (fistulae) as well as for treatment of areas of bone exposure for many years. This has been a reliable procedure with a high success rate. Patients who have undergone cancer treatment including radiation to the jaws and/or chemotherapy are often the individuals who develop such healing problems. This may be the result of tissue injury from the therapy such as radiation, or it may be due to the medications that they are on as part of their treatments such as bisphosphonate drugs which can cause healing problems in the jaw bones (J Oral Maxillofac Surg 73:2080-2086, 2015).

A Procedure with Great Results

One observation I have after performing many of these surgeries over time is that the condition of the fat flap is also affected by the patients’ overall health, nutrition, and the extent of their therapy. Often the result is a connective tissue (fat) tissue flap that does not have very good integrity. This often manifests itself as tissue that has a poor fibrous component. This type of tissue tears or fragments easily. Even in such cases I am usually able to carefully move tissue from one place to another and perform the repair. The realistic expectation is that as the tissue and bone condition is more compromised the success rate goes down. Overall, this is a great procedure that has worked well in our practice.

Call Wagner Oral Surgery and Dental Implant Specialists at (262) 634-4646 to learn more about our procedures.