The creation of an oral mucoperiosteal flap is essential for minor oral surgery, for example, removal of impacted teeth, apicectomy, enucleation of cystic lesions, etc. It is a basic principle that important structures are displayed clearly during surgery, in order to avoid possible complications at adjacent tissues and/or organs. Therefore, one must ensure there is good surgical exposure by creating an adequately designed flap. However, destruction of normal epithelial attachment should be avoided when planning the incision for the flap.
Various techniques have been devised, but many of these have been forgotten. However, it is suggested that some may still be valuable for specific cases of elderly or health-compromised patients who have certain ailments or unusual complications during surgery.
