Class 3 - Surgery before Braces

[pricklypear]

I have a class 3 underbite. I'm in my 20s and have consulted several orthodontists. All the orthodontists I've met have said that braces will need to be worn for a year and a half, followed by a surgery, with the exception of one orthdontist. He has recommended that I do the surgery before the orthodontic treatment (braces will still be worn during the surgery, as teeth need to be held together, but only for about 4 weeks before the surgery according to him).

He has said that the main benefit of this procedure is the reduced treatment time by about 6 months and he has mentioned that doing the surgery before braces is a relatively new approach in orthognathic surgeries.

The other orthodontists I've met have explained to me why the orthodontic treatment needs to be done first; the teeth need to be aligned beforehand so the surgery would give the correct bite. Doing it the other way around could affect the bite because the surgery can't be undone. This makes logical sense to me.

I'm wondering if anyone has gone through something like this or knows something about it. I wouldn't mind doing the surgery before the orthodontic treatment as I am unhappy with my bite more than the alignment of my teeth. However, this procedure seems particularly difficult as the surgery would have to be perfect in order for me to have a proper bite as well as a well aligned teeth, and this isn't a risk I'm willing to take at the expense of having the right bite sooner. What do you think?

Thanks

[laxtreme56]

I've actually heard of this being done several times now. Apparently it is a new practice and is gaining in popularity. As for the pros and cons, well I'm not sure. It sounds great in theory, but almost too good to be true. If this option were presented to me I may very well take it, however I need to get all my wisdom teeth extracted then wait at least 6 months before surgery. Due to that i will most likely have braces put on at or around the time of my wisdom teeth extraction. If i were you I'd ask PLENTY of questions about surgery before braces and if you deem the result acceptible then you should go through with it. It's a very interesting dilema and this new practice may become a breakthrough in orthodontic/orthognantic treatment.