Jaw surgery, also known as orthognathic (or-thog-NATH-ik) surgery, corrects irregularities of the upper(maxilla) and lower (mandible) jaw bones and realigns the jaws and teeth matching to improve the way they work. Making these corrections may also improve your facial appearance
The surgery is not a single event, it’s a process that includes orthodontic treatment to prepare your teeth for your jaw surgery, the surgery itself, recovering from surgery and then more orthodontic treatment for up to a year after your surgery. All told, the jaw surgery process can take between two and three years.
Jawbone problems are categorized either present at birth (congenital) or caused later in life by injuries or other medical conditions that affect your jaw.
Congenital jaw problems can be individual issues like having an overbite or can be related to an overarching medical condition like Treacher Collins syndrome. Here are some other examples of congenital jaw problems.
This happens when some of your bottom teeth sit out in front of your upper teeth.
Open bite is when many teeth don’t come together when you close your mouth.
Cleft palate happens when your face and mouth didn’t develop normally.
Children born with Pierre Robin sequence often have small lower jaws that can make it difficult for infants to eat or breathe.
Or buck teeth, occurs when your top front teeth extend beyond your bottom front teeth. Many people have a slight overbite. A more severe overbite may lead to tooth decay, gum disease or jaw pain. You can prevent children from developing an overbite by limiting thumb-sucking and pacifier use.
The term jaw fracture can refer to your lower jaw (mandible) or your upper jaw (maxilla). You can break your lower jaw by being hit or punched by an object. You can break your upper jaw by falling, being in a motor vehicle accident or being hit.
Healthcare providers might also perform jaw surgery to treat radiation exposure.
Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS): OSA happens when your airway muscles, tonsils, tongue, or excess tissue block your airway, so your breath stops and starts when you sleep. OSA is treated with jaw surgery called maxillomandibular advancement (MMA).
Temporal mandibular joint disorders (TMJ). TMJ can be caused by an improper bite, which is when your upper and lower teeth don’t line up.
Growth disturbances. This refers to changes in your jaw when your body develops too much growth hormone. The excess hormone makes your tissues, including your upper and/or lower jaw, grow unusually large.
You should have a clear idea of what jaw surgery can accomplish and what’s involved when you have jaw surgery. You might have a before-and-after image of your face in mind. If you do, share that image with your healthcare providers. Tell them what you expect jaw surgery to accomplish. Everyone’s jaw problems are different, though. Your healthcare providers will explain what they recommend solving your specific issues and what you can expect.
Understanding your personal goals is one of the factors healthcare providers consider when recommending jaw surgery. They also consider your overall health and the specific health concern your jaw problem causes.
Jaw surgery isn’t a one-and-done event, though. It’s a process that can take years to complete. As you consider jaw surgery, ask questions about the process, from pre-surgery orthodontia to recovery to post-surgery orthodontia. Understanding what jaw surgery involves will help you prepare for what will be a long-term commitment.
There’s a lot of pre-work that goes into jaw surgery. Your healthcare provider needs certain information to plan your surgery. Here are some tests and steps they might take to obtain that information:
Cephalometry is the study and measurement of the head, usually the human head, especially by medical imaging such as radiography. Craniometry, the measurement of the cranium (skull), is a large subset of cephalometry. Cephalometry also has a history in phrenology, which is the study of personality and character as well as physiognomy, which is the study of facial features. Cephalometry as applied in a comparative anatomy context informs biological anthropology. In clinical contexts such as dentistry and oral and maxillofacial surgery, cephalometric analysis helps in treatment and research; cephalometric landmarks guide surgeons in planning and operating.
Yes. Your orthodontist will prepare your mouth and teeth for your new jaw. To do that, they might remove teeth and may put braces on other teeth. If you do need braces, you’ll probably wear them for a year before your surgery, during your surgery and for several months after your surgery. The timing of the orthodontic treatment is planned and based upon your condition. Basically, the timing of the treatment is either before or after the orthognathic surgery. When orthognathic surgery is performed before the orthodontic treatment the procedure is called SURGERY FIRST.
Jaw surgery corrects problems that make your jaws stick out too much or too little, making your facial features appear unbalanced. There are three types of jaw surgery:
You may need to stay in the hospital for one to four days after your surgery so your healthcare providers can monitor your progress. Here’s what you might experience while you’re in the hospital and throughout your recovery. You’ll have a plastic splint in your mouth that your healthcare provider placed during surgery. The splint will help train your mouth muscles to work with your new jaw position. You’ll need to wear your splint except when you eat or clean your teeth. Your face will probably be swollen. You’ll sleep with your head raised and take medication to help with swelling. Your healthcare provider will prescribe medication to help with pain and protect against infections. You’ll need to keep ice packs on your face throughout the first 24 hours, using the ice pack for 20 minutes on, 10 minutes off. You’ll start the liquid diet you’ll be on for the next several weeks. The swelling and the splint in your mouth might make it hard for people to understand you. That can be frustrating. Let your healthcare provider know if you’re really struggling. They’ll suggest things you can do to communicate. Your healthcare provider will remove the plastic splint about eight months after surgery. If you have braces, you’ll continue wearing them for six to nine months after surgery. After your braces are removed, you’ll need to wear removable retainers to keep your teeth in their new position. Your healthcare provider will let you know how often you need to wear your retainers, but most people wear them continuously for a full year. After that, you might need to wear your retainers a few nights a week.