Metal Mouth Message Board

Wow that's amazing!! You must be really chuffed at that movement!

My ortho said my problem wasn't my teeth it was the size and position of my jaw and said the braces would be used to align and coordinate the arches after which a mandibular advancement osteotomy would be required (jaw surgery) he said braces alone won't help my problem as I need surgery (I just don't understand why braces wouldn't help the overjet?)

I'd be so happy though if my overjet reduced like your's. Although my ortho thinks I'm going for surgery after the braces but I'm hoping if I see a good improvement I won't. Although my treatment plan is braces, surgery then braces and I'm not sure how this will go for me.

That really is amazing Mauvaise, I'd be delighted with those results your having!

You did it! I have many crowns and some short roots, too, but my orthodontist was undaunted! My overjet is more slight but I am slated for a TAD to adjust the bite.

Depending on how your teeth are positioned, you may not have the opportunity to see any improvement in your overjet (as far as the amount of the overjet decreasing). Often the teeth are moved in opposite directions so that they will fit after your surgery. This will obviously increase your overjet.


What is often done for large overjets where surgery isn't being performed (often due to the patient's desires), even though it's a skeletal problem, teeth are removed, the gaps where those teeth used to be are closed, and the teeth are moved towards each other. This however can cause negative facial changes (it can make your face look like it's caving in because your teeth have been pushed in).


Maybe they could get some improvement without extractions, but if your overjet is already 12mm, the resulting overjet would likely still appear very poor (it would likely still be significantly larger than the 'normal' amount). It depends on how crooked your teeth are at the moment.

Often in cases of large overjets there's a skeletal malfunction (often a small lower jaw). The best cosmetic results are often achieved by performing a mandibular osteotomy in cases where the cause is a skeletal deficiency.

There are also other health problems associated with a small lower jaw, so I'd consider those benefits as well.