Establishment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgical Services in a Tertiary Health Facility in Tanzania.

Sohal, Karpal Singh; Shaban, Shaban D; Sianga, William; Simon, Elison; Okechi, Uchenna C; Kabogo, Dominiscus; Laizer, Paulo; Urion, Peter; Kayombo, Cecilia

doi:10.21608/omx.2025.322883.1266

Establishment of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgical Services in a Tertiary Health Facility in Tanzania.

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

¹ Oral Health Services, Muhimbili National Hospital, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

² Oral Health Services, Muhimbili National Hospital Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

³ Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

⁴ University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital Abuja, Nigeria

⁵ Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

10.21608/omx.2025.322883.1266

Abstract

Objective: Tanzania's burden of oral and maxillofacial conditions significantly increases the demand for surgical services. Therefore, we report establishing sustainable oral and maxillofacial surgical services for delivering high-quality, evidence-based surgeries in a cost-effective, safe, and efficient manner
Methods: In 2021/2022 plans were made to establish oral and maxillofacial surgical services at the Muhimbili National Hospital- Mloganzila, Tanzania. During the preparatory phase of the program, a team of oral and maxillofacial surgeons from the Muhimbili National Hospital-Upanga developed a strategic plan to see through this establishment. During this phase, the team selected patients with orofacial conditions requiring surgical management, operated on them, and followed them up after surgery.
Results: In the preparatory phase, twenty-five patients were surgically managed. The age of patients ranged between 8 and 76 years with a mean age of 33.68 ± 2.83 years and the male-to-female ratio was 2.1:1. Most of the diagnosed cases managed during the preparatory phase were benign lesions/ cysts (n =10, 40.0%) and traumatic conditions (n =8, 32.0%) Ablative surgical procedures were frequently performed (n =12, 48.0%)
Conclusion: This was a successful establishment of oral and maxillofacial surgical services in a new state-of-the-art health facility in Tanzania.

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