Insight to Different Approaches in Surgical Closure of Oro-antral Communication: A Literature Review

An Oroantral Communication (OAC) is an unnatural non epitheliased continuation in between maxillary antrum and oral cavity. When it doesn’t heal spontaneously or left untreated, this tract becomes epithelised and termed as oroantral fistua. Most common cause of Oro-antral communication is the extraction of maxillary posterior teeth. However there are so many other causes that can lead to development of OAC/fistula like pathologies, facial trauma, forcing a tooth/tooth root into the sinus cavity during attempted removal etc. To prevent the development of fistulas and further sinus problems, it is generally recommended that all of these defects should be closed within 24-72 hours. Various surgical techniques have been described for the closure of OAC. The aim of this literature is to review surgical treatment strategies of OAC and other treatment options along with their advantages and disadvantages, including new techniques.