Dr. Anthony S. Mecca Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery

Chair: Robert S. Glickman, DMD
Professor, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery

Overview

The mission of the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery is to train clinicians and scientists to advance current knowledge in the field, to encourage the discovery of improved therapies and to serve the public by providing quality surgical care.

The Anthony S. Mecca Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery dates back to 1867, when the first organized course in oral surgery was offered by what was then known as the New York College of Dentistry. The course consisted of didactic lectures supplemented by cadaver operations and weekly clinics. As the specialty of oral and maxillofacial surgery evolved, so too did the department. By 1915 daily clinics in diagnosis and treatment of surgical conditions including impactions, neoplasms, fractures, and infections were taught. Later, classes in local anesthesia, nitrous oxide, general anesthesia, and patient assessment were added. Many surgeons responsible for the changing face of the specialty were also leaders of the Anthony S. Mecca Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at NYU — among them Drs. Leo Winter, Harry Seldin, and William Harrigan. The oral and maxillofacial surgery faculty at NYU today embraces the traditions of the past while contributing to the future development of the specialty.