Background
Dr. Melanie S. Lang joined the University of Washington Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery (OMS) as a Clinical Assistant Professor in 2014 after spending 14 years in a busy private practice in Spokane, WA where she practiced the full scope of the specialty treating patients of all ages. She staffed all four of the major Spokane hospitals and medical centers to provide maxillofacial trauma care, worked closely with the cardiac transplant team, and served on numerous dental, medical and hospital committees. Dr. Lang enjoyed teaching as a small group clinical instructor in Introduction to Clinical Medicine for the University of Washington affiliated predoctoral WWAMI/RIDE programs in Spokane from the time of their inception in 2008 until 2014. Since 2012 Dr. Lang has been a monthly audio contributor to Practical Reviews in Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery. Dr. Lang is a Diplomate of the American Board of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and National Dental Board of Anesthesiology.
Dr. Lang, born in northern California, spent her early life in Minnesota and North Dakota. Dr. Lang completed her undergraduate training at Union College in Lincoln, NE. After graduating with High Distinction with her Doctor of Dental Surgery in 1991 from the University of Nebraska and being inducted into the Omicron Kappa Upsilon Honorary Dental Society, Dr. Lang completed a one-year General Practice Residency in Hospital Dentistry at the University of Washington and affiliated hospitals in Seattle, Washington. In 1992, Melanie returned to the University of Nebraska where she completed a one-year Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Clinical and Research Fellowship.
In 1993 Dr. Lang began a six-year dual degree Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery Residency program at the University of Florida in Gainesville which she completed in 1999. Dr. Lang graduated with honors with her Doctor of Medicine from the University of Florida in 1996 and was inducted into the Alpha Omega Alpha Honorary Medical Society and Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society. Dr. Lang has a special interest in facial cosmetic surgery and completed subspecialty training in maxillofacial cosmetic surgery at the University of Alabama in Birmingham in 2000.
Dr. Lang is past president of the Washington State Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons and currently serves as the American Hospital Association’s representative to the American Dental Association Council on Access Prevention and Interprofessional Relations. She is a surveyor and on the board for the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care. Dr. Lang acts as a consultant to the American Association of Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeons Committee on Hospital and Interprofessional Affairs and American Dental Association Medical Advisory Committee. Dr. Lang is a member of several professional organizations some of which include: the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, American College of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, American Academy of Cosmetic Surgeons, American Academy of Facial Plastic Surgeons, American Dental Society of Anesthesiologists, American Medical Association, American Dental Association, Washington State Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons and Western Society of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons.
Dr. Lang has enjoyed traveling in a professional capacity to provide surgical care outside of the United States. She has volunteered her time on several occasions to provide surgical care in South America with a non-profit organization, Hearts in Motion. In addition, she has traveled on surgical missions to Bosnia with a non-profit group, Care for Children.
Clinical Interests
- Dentoalveolar/Impaction Surgery
- Dental Implants
- Management of Medically Compromised Patients
- Anesthesia
- Maxillofacial Trauma
- Orthognathic Surgery/Sleep Apnea
- Maxillofacial Cosmetic Surgery
Publications
- Lang MS, Dodson TB. Epocrates Online Topic: Dental Abscess, 2014.
- Lang MS. Oral Surgery Specialty Chapter in Textbook: Local Anesthesia for Dental Professionals Published 2009 and 2012.
- Lang MS, Waite PD. Bilateral Lingual Nerve Injury after Laryngoscopy for Intubation. J Oral Maxillofac Surg. 2001;59:1497-1499.
- Lang MS, Waite PD, Holmes J, Nichols M. A clinical Study of Alloderm in Lip Augmentation. Am J Cosmetic Surg. 2000;17(4):233-242.
- Bavitz JB, Harn SD, Hansen CA, Lang MS. An Anatomic Study of Mental Neurovascular Bundle-Implant Relationships. Int J Oral Maxillofac Implants. 1993;8(5):563-567.