ABSTRACT
At the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Departments of the Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York and of the University of Maryland, Baltimore, a growing number of patients between 2001 and 2003 were being referred for evaluation and management of “refractory osteomyelitis” of varying duration. A retrospective case series chart review of all patients presenting between February 2001 and November 2003 with the diagnosis of osteonecrosis or osteomyelitis of the jaw. Patients who presented with a diagnosis of osteonecrosis or osteomyelitis of the jaw were included in the review. Patients who had a prior history of radiation therapy to the jaw region or neoplastic disease that directly involved the jaws were excluded from the review. Typical presenting lesions were either a non-healing extraction socket or exposed jawbone; both were refractory to conservative debridement and antibiotic therapy. Since the publication of this chapter, there has been a better understanding of incidence, national rates, clinical characteristics, risk factors, and coexisting conditions.
