Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi all, been using this site for answers to my questions for a while and decided to join up! My name is Antony and I am from Liverpool in the UK ( where the beatles are from). I am 19 and have very recently been referred to a surgeon in the hope that they will be able to fix my big bottom jaw. Im so relieved that finally after waiting years the wheels are in motion (even if its a slow motion). My quite bad underbite has been somewhat of a problem to me over the years, It really affects my confidence and I have been depressed due to it affecting me so badly. From the front you wont be able to tell I have it but from the side its really bad. I think that I am likely to have a BSSO or mandibular osteotomy (are they the same?) My dentist referred me and has said that due to the years of braces I have had and they havent worked that the only way to correct it is with jaw suregry to my lower jaw to bring it back and make my face more symmetrical. I am just wondering if anybody anywhere can give me general advice on coping because I find it hard sometimes! Also if anybody has experience from the Uk or anywhere of the rough waiting times on the NHS?????????
Thanks and sorry for the life story!!

hey tony, im also 19 and from the UK, Cheltenham to be exact and i have an underbite too. I understand what you mean about confidence, i was in Bath city centre the other day and a stranger made fun of my problem as he walked past me, things like this really get me down for weeks afterwards. I find it helps to remind myself that i'm not the only one going through this, and that people such as Nahky have come out the other side with amazing results. When i think of the end result my anger towards these kinds of remarks fades away. I'm 2 months into my brace treatment so i'm unsure about the surgery waiting times, plus im with the west midlands trust so waiting times may differ. I hope you get the surgery soon and can begin move on with your life.

Hi Antony,
I am due to be starting my treatments on the NHS in London. Brace date is 30th April - I have been browsing this site for months and found it invaluable.

I think the timings vary depending on how quickly your teeth get into the right position for surgery, it appears anything as little at 8 months (exceptional cases) to 3-4 years (again unusual) - I would say on average the treatment time is expected to be about 2 years from start to finish - obviously depending on what you are having done.

I have waited around 16 months from my first consultation to getting my braces date. Once they get your teeth moving, I think they are keen to get on and do the surgery, so I believe most of the delay is before treatment starts.

Good Luck!
Happysmiler

hey guys =]

well am from the uk too and i am also getting treatment for my underbite

am a little further on than you though as am over a year into the brace work its getting exciting now as we are now in talks too see if i should get double jaw surgery or just a le fort (am hoping for double myself as av herd its better outcome )

and i no how you guys feel its not easy being in school with an underbite
and i find being a girl you get tore apart even more soo =[

but hopefully not long too stuff and i hope you don't have to wait too long as i found in scotland i got my treatment started very fast =]

xxxxx

Hi guys, I'm from the UK (Staffordshire) and recently underwent BSSO, Leforte and Genio. 3 weeks ago infact!

I was in braces for 18 months before surgery, my surgeon says it's best for the person to stop growing before any corrections are made. I am 20 years old currently.

They originally planned for just BSSO but after some consultation it was decided to move the upper forward as moving the lower back on it's own can make things look undesirable!

Waiting times on the NHS...well, it depends where you are located and the waiting time in your area. If you have the cash go private I went private for my braces or else I think i'd still be waiting for surgery now!

Hope things go well and feel free to ask any questions.

Hey Mart,

I'm sorry to hear you had comments whilst out in Bath.

Unfortunately, people are so shallow minded, and do not realise the effect their comments have on others - like you say it can affect you for weeks afterwards.

However, you have to rise above it and keep looking ahead to when you will have a perfect bite.

I am now 38 and wish I had sorted out my underbite years ago, I can still recall the times when I have received unfavourable comments, that really do hurt . But just think, you will soon have a perfect bite and be a lot stronger person for it.

This is just an adventure, when you will come out the other end a stronger person for it.

Good Luck
Happysmiler

Hi everyone, I'm an 18 year old from Glasgow who also has an underbite. I haven't started treatment yet, but wondered if anyone could tell me whether they could get treatment on the NHS for their underbite even though ther defect doesn't really interfere with their daily lives that much? I was wondering because a have a complete underbite but don't have any pain or trouble eating and if I was honest I'm considering treatment for cosmetic/social reasons only. Also, I'd like to know Eegsey how much your braces cost you altogether from the private sector.

Hi AGroanOfTediumEscapesMe

Yes you should almost definitley be able to get surgery on the NHS. If they see it as 'abnormal' so to speak then they will put you on the waiting list. I guess you have seen an ortho already? And he/she has said the problem cannot be fixed with braces alone?

For my braces I believe it was between £3500-£4000. But worth every penny to be honest. I visit my ortho once every month at his house where he runs a private clinic on a friday. And if there's a problem I don't have to worry to much! I would advise anyone to go this down this path if it is available to them. Obviously for the surgery we are talking crazy money..

Hi there,

Yes you should be able to get treatment on the NHS, however you have to have a strong case for them to accept you.

There is nothing wrong with your motivation being purely on the appearance of your face and not functional, but you need to convince them that it affects your life and confidence enough for them to take you on.

I didn't used to get any pain, but as I am getting older I do get joint pain and general aches in my muscles, where my teeth don't fit comfortably in any position.

All I would suggest, is think carefully of what you will say to the Surgeon/Ortho when you see them - they can pick and chose their patients so you need to convince them that you need to have this done.

Good Luck
Happysmiler

Hi anthony

Im in the UK in west sussex, im 27 have had my braces on for 9 months now and am due for double surgery in the late summer/autumn.

Afraid i cant help much on the underbite as i have the opposite problem, but i can tell you about waiting times etc in my case (remember tho all cases are different and all NHS trusts have differnent waiting times etc.

I waited nearly 2 and a half years between my intial consultation and having the braces fitted, this was partly due to the NHS trust im under being in appalling debt and partly because i am a pretty serious case i had to have the held consultant orthodontist carry out the work and not one of the other orthodontists.

All being well i will wear the braces 3 years in total, half before surgery and half after, tho currently im due to have the surgery a little early as the teeth have moved better than expected.

The waiting time in my hospital was so severe i was actually advised to have it carried out privately, but the cost with the operation was a staggering amount, cant remember exactly how much but know it was over £10,000 braces alone are somewot cheaper, from friends i know whove had them i think somewhere between £3,000 and £5,000 is typical. I couldnt afford to pay the higher figure so had no choice but to wait the 2 and half years for the NHS.

As far as the other post about getting treatment on the NHS it is possible although my dentist told me that i was only the 2nd adult who he had referred to the NHS orthodontist whom the hospital had agreed to treat for free, due to the severity of my problem. But as i say above all health authoritys differ.

Hope this helps.

Hey guys,

I had an edge-on-edge bite where my upper and lower teeth were on the same vertical plane (as opposed to the upper falling in front of the lower). From the looks of it, you'd think it's an underbite. And oh yeah, I HATED my big lower jaw!!

After a year of braces, I had my upper and lower jaw surgery on the last day of January. I documented the entire process at http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/ - check it out, it might answer a lot of your questions.

Best of luck!

Kristen
http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/

Hey guys,

I had an edge-on-edge bite where my upper and lower teeth were on the same vertical plane (as opposed to the upper falling in front of the lower). From the looks of it, you'd think it's an underbite. And oh yeah, I HATED my big lower jaw!!

After a year of braces, I had my upper and lower jaw surgery on the last day of January. I documented the entire process at http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/ - check it out, it might answer a lot of your questions.

Best of luck!

Kristen
http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/

Hey guys,

I had an edge-on-edge bite where my upper and lower teeth were on the same vertical plane (as opposed to the upper falling in front of the lower). From the looks of it, you'd think it's an underbite. And oh yeah, I HATED my big lower jaw!!

After a year of braces, I had my upper and lower jaw surgery on the last day of January. I documented the entire process at http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/ - check it out, it might answer a lot of your questions.

Best of luck!

Kristen
http://bracemyself.blogspot.com/

Hey everyone thanks for the replies, its so nice to know there are poeple out there that have had the same problems as me. I got really upset today, I was in the Q at the Asda, and I admit it I was in a world of my own but this group of lads walked past and thought I was staring at them, when I wasnt I was just staring behind them, anyway I was hurled a BLAH BLAH BLAH of abuse one of them calling me a 'Gary Jaw' (because people who take Gary or ecstasy stick their jaw out on the comedown apparently) well, can I just say I am a 19 yr old lad and I dont cry, but I flippin did as soon as I got home! ALSO Im at the letter box every morning like a dog waiting for a letter from the hospital...it aint gonna come I have a feeling!
Thanks every1
Ant

Hey everyone thanks for the replies, its so nice to know there are poeple out there that have had the same problems as me. I got really upset today, I was in the Q at the Asda, and I admit it I was in a world of my own but this group of lads walked past and thought I was staring at them, when I wasnt I was just staring behind them, anyway I was hurled a BLAH BLAH BLAH of abuse one of them calling me a 'Gary Jaw' (because people who take Gary or ecstasy stick their jaw out on the comedown apparently) well, can I just say I am a 19 yr old lad and I dont cry, but I flippin did as soon as I got home! ALSO Im at the letter box every morning like a dog waiting for a letter from the hospital...it aint gonna come I have a feeling!
Thanks every1
Ant