The excellent historical account, “Looking Back” by Bob Debes and Donald Butler, chronicles the Department’s founding by Dr. Edward C. Hinds in 1949. The mission of the Department was to provide training for dentists interested in the new specialty of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. What began as a small, Texas-based effort has grown into the largest training program in North America, paralleling the growth of the specialty and propelled, to a large degree, by the rapid expansion of the Texas Medical Center into the largest medical center in the world. The Department now boasts a national and international faculty and alumni body with an impact that is truly global. Faculty members helped pioneer the field of orthognathic surgery and have also been at the forefront of TMJ reconstructive surgery. The integrated OMS and MD track with the University of Texas Medical School has matured into a highly sought-after program having graduated over 216 trainees as of 2024. Collaborations with Rice University have spawned dynamic research programs in tissue engineering funded by the Department of Defense, The National Institutes of Health, The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Foundation, and commercial vendors. Currently, an integrated OMS/Ph.D. program continues to produce unique clinical scientists. Faculty and alumni members have risen to positions of prominence in organized medicine and dentistry including the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Hospital Organizations (JCAHO), International Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, International Association of Oral Implantology, American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, the Texas Dental Association, and the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners.

This remarkable evolution would not have been possible, were it not for the dedicated efforts of multiple generations of gifted faculty and residents. The Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Department in 2024 enjoys a pre-eminent role in Houston for trauma management. The Department is composed of six fully privileged and staffed divisions in the Texas Medical Center and is the sole oral and maxillofacial surgery residency program in Houston. The Department’s unique presence in both Level I trauma hospitals serving Houston, Harris County, and the surrounding southeastern part of the state establishes the faculty and residents as the primary providers for maxillofacial trauma care in this area. Typically, over 1,200 major trauma-related procedures are performed by the Department annually. The expertise of the Department in this area is so well established that, for over thirty years, the U.S. military has rotated residents to Houston for training. Another area of need served by the Department is the treatment of infections of the face and neck from diseased teeth. Due to extensive neglect, many of these infections become life-threatening. Over 400 infections are treated by the Department each year. Approximately 70% of all urgent care (trauma and infections) provided by the Department for the citizens of the State and County is non-reimbursed.

In 2014, the Department expanded its scope to include maxillofacial oncology and reconstructive surgery. In 2018, it added a fellowship program to this area. Other areas of national and international recognition of the Department are in the fields of orthognathic surgery (correction of congenital and acquired deformities of the jaws), oral and maxillofacial pathology, and improved techniques to reconstruct the jaws and replace missing teeth through the use of dental implants and bone grafts. The Department also enjoys a pre-eminent role in the education of undergraduate dental students and the provision of oral surgery care to the underprivileged. New challenges present themselves on a regular basis. However, with the absolute commitment from current Department members to recruit the very best residents available, provide an exceptional didactic and clinical education, embark upon ground-breaking research, and maintain the reputation of excellence, dedication and leadership built by the generations who passed before us, we will continue to climb the heights of the specialty.