An orthodontist is not an oral surgeon, though both professions are specialized fields within dentistry. Both professionals begin their careers by completing dental school, earning either a Doctor of Dental Surgery (DDS) or Doctor of Dental Medicine (DMD) degree, but their post-graduate training and scope of practice diverge completely after this shared foundation. The orthodontist focuses on non-surgical methods for alignment, while the oral and maxillofacial surgeon is dedicated to surgical procedures involving the mouth, jaw, and face. These two specialists frequently work together to provide comprehensive care, especially in cases where a patient’s complex misalignment requires both surgical and non-surgical treatments.
The Focus of an Orthodontist
The primary focus of an orthodontist is the diagnosis, prevention, and correction of malocclusion, commonly referred to as a “bad bite,” and dental misalignment. They are specialists in the movement of teeth and the modification of jaw growth to achieve a functional and aesthetic relationship between the upper and lower arches. Their practice centers on non-surgical techniques that apply controlled, continuous forces to gradually reposition teeth within the alveolar bone.
Orthodontists treat issues such as crowded teeth, excessive spacing, overbites, underbites, and crossbites. They utilize specialized appliances to achieve these corrections, including fixed braces, removable clear aligners, and palatal expanders. The treatment process involves detailed study of facial and dental records to develop a plan for the desired tooth movement. This process is long-term, requiring regular adjustments over many months or years to ensure stability.
The Focus of an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon
The oral and maxillofacial surgeon (OMS) is the surgical specialist of the dental profession, focusing on operative procedures involving the hard and soft tissues of the mouth, jaws, and face. Their scope of practice encompasses a variety of complex conditions that require invasive treatment. Oral surgeons are trained to manage diseases, injuries, and defects affecting the head, neck, and facial region.
A common procedure performed by an OMS is the surgical extraction of impacted teeth, such as wisdom teeth, which often requires removing surrounding bone and soft tissue. They also perform corrective jaw surgery, known as orthognathic surgery, to treat severe skeletal discrepancies that cannot be fixed by orthodontics alone. Furthermore, their expertise includes the placement of dental implants, the treatment of facial trauma like jaw fractures, and the diagnosis and removal of pathology, such as cysts and tumors, within the oral cavity and jaws.
Required Education and Post-Graduate Training
The difference in practice areas stems directly from the rigorous and separate post-graduate residency programs each specialist must complete. After dental school, their paths immediately diverge into specialty training.
An orthodontist enters a residency program that typically lasts two to three years, focusing heavily on craniofacial growth and development, physics of tooth movement, and biomaterials. This residency is university-based, culminating in a specialty certificate or a Master’s degree in Orthodontics. The curriculum provides in-depth instruction on the design and application of corrective appliances and the long-term management of alignment issues.
The training for an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon is significantly longer, lasting a minimum of four years and often extending to six years. Longer programs frequently include medical school, resulting in the surgeon earning both a dental degree and a medical degree (MD). This hospital-based residency requires extensive rotations in general surgery, internal medicine, anesthesia, and emergency medicine. The OMS residency prepares the surgeon to perform complex procedures under general anesthesia and often grants them hospital privileges, distinguishing it as the only surgical specialty within dentistry.