Oral means anything related to the mouth. Inside our mouth we have teeth and the tongue and gums. And, of course, the jaw is included in this classification, too.

Oral surgery can sort out a few problems like the loss of a tooth, impacted molars, i.e., teeth which have no room to grow and so grow into the gums and cause pain and swelling, and alignment of the jaw so the action of chewing, speaking, breathing and swallowing become almost unnoticeable. It also takes care of the temporomandibular joint, that is, the part where the jaw meets the face. Dentures are very important for those who don?t have enough teeth.

Our mouth plays a very important role in our daily lives. It communicates our words or expressions. We eat and drink with our mouths, without which survival would be threatened.

Pain and swelling in the mouth may be hiding some bigger problem. It may be cancer or some problem with your teeth that needs the attention of a dentist. Any lump or suspicious lesion must be checked out. Don?t ever think that if you ignore it, it will just go away. The sooner you get treatment, the better the chances of a cure. Oral cancer is usually completely curable if caught in the early stages.

Sometimes a white patch appears in the mouth. This is called frictional keratosis. It is caused by regular friction of the teeth or dentures on the soft tissues of the mouth. If the source of irritation is removed, this patch usually disappears.

Oral surgery ranges from minor (simple tooth-straightening, for example) to very major (palate-correcting surgery, for example). A cleft palate is a deformation of the mouth and needs a surgical procedure to correct it. Also, implant surgery helps in supporting or even replacing parts of the mouth caused by trauma or disease.

A basic oral hygiene routine and regular check-ups go a long way towards preventing the need for oral surgery.