It should be said that oral and maxillofacial surgery has dual attributes. On the one hand, in order to prevent and treat oral and maxillofacial diseases, oral and maxillofacial surgery can not be completely separated from stomatology, orthodontics, prosthodontics and other related disciplines; On the other hand, because of its own surgical attributes, it has the same characteristics and connections with general surgery, plastic surgery, internal medicine and pediatrics. Therefore, we can think that oral and maxillofacial surgery is not only an important part of stomatology, but also an important branch of clinical medicine.
About naming
Throughout the development history of stomatology, it is inseparable from the development of surgery. Although medical books have recorded and practiced dentistry since BC, the formal establishment and rise of dentistry should be said to be in the western countries from 17 to 18 century. Pierre Fauchard (1678 ~ 176 1) published a monograph on dentistry, which improved the clinical work of dentistry and was called the father of modern dentistry because of his contribution. At that time, dentistry was in the field of surgery, called dental surgery. Dentists are also called dentists,
Up to now, the dental degree still holds the title of Doctor of Oral Surgery (D.D.S). According to research, most of the founders of ancient dentistry were also doctors of medicine at that time.
According to some books, the term "oral surgery" was named by American James Edmund Garretson (1828 ~ 1895). Garrettson himself was a surgeon at dental school.
Oral surgery teaching based on tooth extraction. In the following years, the word "oral surgery" was not only used to name the organizational system of hospital departments, but also widely used in various teaching materials and reference books.
The concept of maxillofacial surgery appeared in the early 20th century, but when, in which country and by which scholar it was formally proposed or named "Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery" needs further study.
In Europe, oral and maxillofacial surgery in the former Soviet Union was relatively developed, especially thanks to World War II in the 1940s. Due to the further development of the treatment of maxillofacial war wounds, the name of oral and maxillofacial surgery was widely used and recognized in the former Soviet Union in the late 1940s. Stomatology in China was officially recognized in 1952 when the departments of colleges and universities were adjusted. Therefore, after 1952, the formal establishment and name of stomatology or oral and maxillofacial surgery came into being. 1956, the Ministry of Health promulgated the Outline of Stomatology Education, renamed "Oral Surgery" as "Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery", and officially affirmed the name of "Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery" in the form of official documents for the first time. Therefore, in 1959, the name of oral and maxillofacial surgery was used in the first textbook published in summer in China. The original works of American W. Harry Archer and Gastav O.Kruger were renamed oral and maxillofacial surgery after the mid-1970s. At present, the name "Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery" is not only widely accepted by most countries, but also used by the societies or academic organizations to which it belongs.