Aftercare and Follow-up

Abstract

Postoperative care protocols vary considerably and are often based on individual experiences, rather than any rigorous evidence base. Patients may be followed up for only a month or two, or they may be kept under review for a number of years depending on the surgeon’s interest, ongoing complications and need for further surgery. Yet one can argue that long-term follow-up is essential to enable us to assess long-term outcomes, necessary for “quality control.” How can we say we are “good” at anything, if we don’t see and critically analyse the long-term results? Lack of complications does not necessarily mean a good outcome. Nevertheless, a pragmatic approach is often required, particularly in centres where high volumes of trauma and limited resources make it impossible to provide long-term follow-up for every patient.

For a more detailed review of this topic see Atlas of Operative Maxillofacial Trauma Surgery by M Perry and S Holmes.