UNAIR NEWS – Universitas Airlangga Dental and Oral Hospital (RSGM) for the first time performed orthognathic surgery at the end of December 2018. The operation was carried out on an 18-year-old male from Surabaya. The success of the operation then bring optimism in the future of RSGM that they will be able to serve complicated surgery cases related to the oral cavity, jaw, and surrounding areas.
Orthognathic surgery is an surgery for correcting abnormalities of the upper and lower jaw. The surgery adjust the positions the upper and lower jaw to a good position.
As a dentist and Director of RSGM UNAIR, Prof. Coen Pramono D. drg., SU., Sp. BM (K) FICS, has often performed orthognathic surgery. However, as he explained at a press conference on Friday, January 11, the orthognathic surgery performed last December was the first time done at RSGM UNAIR.
“The purpose of surgery is to improve the function of chewing. It is simultaneously improving the face shape to be more beautiful, more handsome, and so on, ” explained Prof. Coen.
In performing the jaw surgery, Prof. Coen said that the first obstacle faced was the form of anatomy. The more abnolmalities found, the more difficult the operation will be.
Prof. Coen said that jaw surgery like this is rarely done in Indonesia, unlike in Europe because, the growth pattern of head and jaw area of Indonesian people is different from Europe.
“In Indonesia it is rarely found. A year, there may be only 3-4 times (operation, ed), ” said Prof. Coen.
This orthognathic surgery is the first surgical operation performed by RSGM. Actually this operation had been performed in the United States since 1846. At its peak in 1965, professors in Europe created new surgical techniques. Prof. Coen claimed to be lucky because in those years he was there and participated in learning techniques for various types of jaw surgery.
On that occasion Prof. Coen explained that FKG UNAIR has a specialist program for oral and maxillofacial field. RSGM also handles cases of oral and maxillofacial, from the oral cavity and its surroundings, jaw tumors, to construction. As the director, Prof. Coen wanted that the treatment of orthognathic surgery be the flagship treatment at RSGM.
“Hopefully we can be the center of dental and oral care, especially for oral and maxillofacial surgery. So that we can become the referred center, at least in Eastern Indonesia, “he explained. (*)
Author: Binti Q. Masruroh
