Curriculum
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Clinical training
During your clinical training, you spend four quarters with dedicated Mayo Clinic faculty in maxillofacial prosthetics and dental oncology, head and neck surgery, radiation oncology, and medical oncology. You work closely with these consultants to manage the care of both inpatients and outpatients.
The typical schedule for a Maxillofacial Prosthetics and Dental Oncology fellow includes close interaction with multiple departments throughout the year to enhance patient care and the educational experiences. You have the opportunity to care for patients requiring needs in many areas of maxillofacial prosthetics and dental oncology.
Rotation descriptions
Maxillofacial prosthodontics
You become familiar with all phases of the diagnosis and treatment of intraoral and extraoral maxillofacial prosthetics. You gain clinical experience in:
- Clinical examination techniques
- Examination and treatment planning for extraoral prostheses
- Maxillary and mandibular design and fabrication
- Prosthodontic management of irradiated patients
- Digital applications of maxillofacial reconstructions
- Reconstruction of mandibular defects
- Treatment planning for acquired defects
You also study:
- Coloring
- Congenital defects
- Cranial and extraoral implants
- Diagnostic media in maxillofacial prosthetics
- Extraoral prosthesis history
- Facial materials and adhesives
- Facial patterns and molds
- Maxillofacial anatomy and physiology
- Palatal lift
- Splints and stents
Oncology
You gain an understanding of the diagnosis and treatment modalities used in treating malignant disease. Emphasis is placed on the surgical resection of tumors and the treatment of malignancies with therapeutic radiation.
You observe the effects of chemotherapy on patients in active care and on patients who have completed treatment. You also follow patients who are being evaluated for the first time. Through this patient contact, you gain a better understanding of the effects of chemotherapeutic agents on soft and hard tissues.
Oral pathology
You study the clinical and histologic presentation of head and neck pathology. Lectures and seminars are presented in oral pathology, oral diagnosis and surgical pathology, along with clinical experiences.
Speech pathology
You gain a profound understanding of the speech and swallowing process to enhance patient care. Working together with the Division of Speech Pathology allows for objective assessments of rehabilitations.
Head and neck
This experience improves your understanding of the types of patients seen by otorhinolaryngologists. You observe the surgeon's clinical practice and participate in surgical procedures.
Didactic training
Your didactic training stresses maxillofacial prosthetics and dental oncology. You become proficient in all aspects of the laboratory technology needed for fabricating maxillofacial prostheses. You also receive instruction in dental materials, the basic sciences, and current literature in maxillofacial prosthetics and dental oncology.
You attend seminars on all aspects of maxillofacial prosthetics during the four quarters of your fellowship. You learn about examination, diagnosis and treatment planning. You are also involved in weekly head and neck cancer conferences and seminars for craniofacial anomalies.
Seminars include but are not limited to:
- Management of patients undergoing surgical resection of the maxilla and mandible
- Care of patients with facial defects
- Diagnosis, treatment planning, and management of patients who need various types of implant prostheses
Case studies
Throughout the Maxillofacial Prosthetics and Dental Oncology Fellowship, you prepare patient presentations for multidisciplinary discussion.
In addition, you participate in the craniofacial conference, in which complex dentofacial deformity patients are evaluated and their coordinated treatment is planned with specialists from plastic surgery, otolaryngology, medical genetics, speech pathology, psychology, and social services.
Research training
You are encouraged to pursue a project focusing on maxillofacial prosthetics during your fellowship.
Teaching opportunities
You may have the opportunity to teach advanced Mayo Clinic prosthodontic residents as well as visiting medical and dental students through chair-side instruction and seminars.
Evaluation
To ensure that you acquire adequate knowledge and develop the appropriate technical skills to meet program expectations, your performance is monitored carefully during the Maxillofacial Prosthetics and Dental Oncology Fellowship. You are formally evaluated by supervising faculty members on a regular basis and meet with the program director to review these evaluations. In addition, you regularly evaluate the faculty to confirm that your educational needs are being met.