Conventional prosthetic rehabilitation after free flap reconstruction of a maxillectomy defect: a clinical report.

Microvascular free flap reconstruction of maxillectomy defects has been advocated as a more desirable treatment option than conventional prosthetic rehabilitation. Free flap reconstruction can successfully separate the oral and sinonasal cavities, but the reconstructed defect may not improve the treatment outcome when compared with conventional prosthetic rehabilitation of a nonsurgically reconstructed defect. In this report, the prosthetic management of a patient who underwent immediate microvascular free flap reconstruction of a unilateral maxillectomy defect is described, and the issue of surgical versus nonsurgical reconstruction is discussed.