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During the COVID-19 pandemic, wearing facemasks was mandatory in the United Kingdom except for individuals with medical exemptions. Facemasks cover the full lower half of the face; however, the effect of facemasks on age perception is not yet known. The present study examined whether age estimation accuracy of unfamiliar young adult women is impaired when the target is wearing a facemask. This study also examined whether makeup, which has previously been shown to increase error bias, further impairs age estimation accuracy when paired with a facemask. The findings indicate that both facemasks and makeup tend to result in overestimation of the young women's age compared to neutral faces, but the combination of both is not additive. Individual level analysis also revealed large individual differences in age estimation accuracy ranging from estimates within 1 year of the target's actual age, and age estimates which deviated by up to 20 years.

Surgery of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is increasingly recognised as a subspecialist area of interest within our specialty and many procedures such as arthroscopy, arthroplasty, and replacement of the TMJ are becoming increasingly centralised and restricted to certain regions. We previously made a national survey of trainees and have sought to augment this with a survey of trainers to find out the nature of practice and patterns of referral nationally. We have also examined the consultants’ expectations of competent final-year trainees. To do this we made an electronic survey of Fellows of the British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (BAOMS) and received 82 responses (26%). Many just provided simple treatments within their clinical practice, only 16 did arthroscopy, and 14 alloplastic joint replacements. From those who answered the question, only 10 would allow a competent final-year trainee to do an alloplastic joint replacement under supervision. Referrals for TMJ subspecialist care were predominantly made to the West Midlands, East Midlands, and North West, with 24 respondents stating they would either refer open TMJ surgery centrally within or outside the region. Centralisation of services means that training opportunities in surgery of the TMJ are reduced, and restricted to only a few regions. Other models of training may need to be introduced such as simulation, “taster” sessions, and brief clinical attachments. For the budding subspecialist, however, a dedicated Fellowship may become essential to ensure adequate exposure before starting independent consultant practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Surgery of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) is emerging as a subspecialty in its own right within Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMFS). Recent guidelines on training and practice within this area have laid down standards of competence in certain procedures, and asked for evidence of “exposure” to others at the point of completion of higher training in OMFS. Provision of surgery of the TMJ is becoming more centralised within tertiary referral centres, with resulting disparity in opportunities for clinical experience in different training regions. We sought to gain a national perspective about this, and establish whether all trainees are truly equal when it comes to exposure to surgery of the TMJ during higher surgical training. An electronic survey was distributed to all members of an online Yahoo! group forum reserved for specialty trainees in OMFS. From those surveyed, 25 (48%) stated they had no experience of arthroscopy, while 19 (37%) and 38 (75%) reported no exposure to operations for alloplastic and autogenous replacement of the TMJ, respectively. A mode score of 1 out of 5 (44%, n = 22) was returned when they were asked to rate the likelihood of considering TMJ surgery as a subspecialty. The current survey highlights variable exposure to operating on the TMJ across geographical divides within the UK, and little interest among trainees in pursuing the subspecialty as a career. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the United Kingdom, most training programmes in oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMFS) do not sufficiently cover management of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) to enable newly appointed consultants to practise independently as TMJ surgeons. We describe a one-year fellowship programme for a senior OMFS trainee who had just completed training, which included various international courses in the USA and Europe on specific aspects of TMJ surgery. Under the direct supervision of a consultant, the trainee completed 70 arthroscopic procedures, 13 TMJ cryotherapies, 16 TMJ arthrocenteses, 9 TMJ arthroplasties, and 20 total prosthetic TMJ replacements. Our experience indicates that specific training is required for those who wish to practise in the field of TMJ management and surgery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]