Why did you have Orthognathic Surgery?

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#1 Post by **tomk** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 5:52 pm

I need to have it. My TMJ pain is getting really bad and I'm only 24.

My lower jaw is larger than my upper and it's putting stress on my TMJ joints.

Anyone had the surgery for this reason? Did it help?

#2 Post by **loulou123** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 2:45 am

hi tomk

ive got issues with my TMJ causing me pain too (im 27) in my case my jaw joint sometimes partly dislocates too. the TMJ problems arent the only reason for me getting surgery, its just one of the probs.

havent had surgery yet so cant say if its helped me or not, but when i discussed the risks with my surgon, i think he said in most cases it helps, in some it has no effect and in a small number of cases it makes it worse.

Hope this helps a little, feel free to ask any questions.

#3 Post by **asd** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 3:45 am

I had surgery as i had an overbite aswell as an openbite. I didnt feel comfortable smiling because my bottom jaw would move back and my top teeth where too high you could hardly see my teeth, as well as having problems eating. Im 4 weeks post op now and pleased with the results, its taking a long time to recover and feel back to my normal self but i feel it will definetly be all worth it in the end

#4 Post by **dubnobass** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 4:59 am

In honesty, just to have straight teeth. I don't care about my bite, as long as I can eat. I used to have a lot of jaw pain and problems with clicking and what felt like dislocation when I was 9 or 10 years old. It happened every time I went swimming, probably because I am a terrible swimmer and used to yawn and gulp for air whilst doggy paddling around in my armbands. Anyway, on one of the occasions that it 'dislocated' whilst swimming, it stuck that way - it was very painful for several weeks, then the pain faded. Now I think it was probably stress on the joint from a lower jaw that was growing at different rates on each side.

I had braces when I was 11 or 12 - a palate brace on the top with headgear, and fixed braces on the bottom. I knocked the bottom brackets off time and time again because I have a complete overbite, and was not given a bite block. There were no spacers in 1984 either, I had my molar bands forcibly hammered on, that was fun. I never wore the headgear. Oh, and I broke the palate brace several times, too. My parents got sick of endlessly ferrying me to the orthodontist and asked them to take it all out.

I think if I'd stuck with this, it might have helped. I suspect the plan was to hold back growth of the upper jaw with the headgear while my lower jaw caught up. Lower braces on a growing lower jaw might have also helped make room for my lower overcrowded teeth. Anyway, that's all in the past..

20 years later, my teeth were still crowded and wonky, both top and bottom, and also pointed inwards. My orthodontist thinks this is all due to the position of my jaws.. so to correct the teeth and make the changes stick, it's braces and surgery.

The braces have forced my teeth into rounded arches and have forced them to stick out, leaving me with a 12mm overjet. My lower jaw is underveloped in general, and underdeveloped more so on the left side than the right. This means I also have a 'cant' where the right hand side on my upper jaw has grown down longer than the left, to match the position of my teeth in my lower jaw.

So - to make my teeth meet properly, get rid of the goofy teeth and to give me a mouth that's horizontal and parallel with my eyes (rather than tilted to one side), I need the surgery.

If I get TMJ problems after all this, there will be trouble!!!

#5 Post by **john21** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 8:05 am

loulou23,when you say that it "sometimes it makes worse",you mean only the TMJ or the whole prochedure?

#6 Post by **TheUnk311** » Fri Jul 13, 2007 9:01 am

loulou23,when you say that it "sometimes it makes worse",you mean only the TMJ or the whole prochedure?

Throughout the duration of your orthodontic treatment, with or without surgery, your bite will change pretty frequently and your jaw will try and adjust to it. I think this may cause people with some TMJ pain/problems to temporarily get worse. But at the end of treatment you will have a nice stable and correct bite which should relieve any stress on your TMJ you had before and during the treatment, and over time it will lessen if not go away completely.

I had a lot of popping before braces and rarely some pain from it. Since being braced it's been up and down. I had jaw surgery about 2 months ago, now I only experience the popping first thing in the morning (I'm guessing I started clinching my teeth during sleep with these elastics in) and througout the rest of the day it's usually fine. So currently it looks like it has helped. My OS said that if the bad bite was the cause of the TMJ popping/pain, it could take a couple years for it to be completely gone.

I had a few reasons for having the surgery. I had my wisdom teeth removed, my uppers were over erupting as they had nothing to make contact on, and my lowers were half erupted/impacted. With my underbite the 2 rear upper molars still had no contact. I also had the TMJ issues which I was told could be alleviated by correcting my bite, and the only way to do that was with braces and surgery. I also had crooked teeth anyways and was never happy with my profile so decided to go for it.

#7 Post by **plasticwings** » Sat Jul 14, 2007 12:20 am

The main reason I had surgery was because there was no way my orthodontist would put braces on my teeth unless I did it. While the recovery part was a pain in the rear end, I'm quite happy with it. My crossbite was corrected and I can breathe better.

#8 Post by **Brandyleigh35** » Sat Jul 14, 2007 1:05 am

To cure my sleep apnea, and TMJ issues, which it has! In addition I will come out of the whole deal with a lovely smile so it has totally been worth it.

BRandy

#9 Post by **chrisk** » Tue Jul 17, 2007 5:35 am

My upper and lower jaw surgery, levelling of a cant in my upper jaw, and genioplasty was to correct my 15mm overjet. This had led to periodontal problems, recession, uneven wear on my teeth, and a lifetime of a lack of confidence. My bad bite at one stage even necessitated a night in hospital after getting meat stuck in my throat from not being chewed properly.

My ortho gave me the option of braces on the top to have some cosmetic improvements or braces top and bottom with jaw surgery. Braces top and bottom would also enable him to pull up a partially erupted molar and move it into place (I never had the room for it to come up). As I wanted a functional improvement I went the braces/jaw surgery route.

The braces rounded out my very narrow upper jaw and reduced my 15mm overjet to around 10mm. Surgery moved my top jaw up and out 4mm (and levelled), my bottom jaw out 9mm and my chin about 6mm. At nearly 1 year post-op, I can confidently say it has been worth it. I don't seem to have as much sinus/hay fever problems, my teeth meet as they should, the dentist can get to my teeth a lot easier (no longer crowded), I can eat corn on the cob without leaving half of it behind, I can chew meat a lot easier, and I am a lot more confident person.

I marvel every day at being able to close my lips over my teeth, my teeth aren't yellow and slimy from being stuck in the air all the time, and I feel that my slightly lazy eye that I had pre-surgery has gone.

I went into this for functional reasons, but the cosmetic changes have been a bonus.

I think for everyone it is a matter of weighing up the pros and cons of the surgery and whether it is worth it for you. The only downside for me has been the lingering numbness in my chin and lip (which I can live with), and the continuing numbness/tightness in my top teeth (which I'm hoping will get better in time - I still can't bite through apple peel or hard biscuits - but this is ever so slowly improving). If these things don't improve with time, they are a small price to pay compared to the positives that I've had. It has definitely been worth it.

#10 Post by **marcusjb** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 11:10 am

I'm having by lower jaw moved forward to help get a better bite - mainly for functional reasons. 34 years of wearing away my lower jaw has done quite a bit of damage and I need to get it sorted to offer myself better opportunities in later life (if I carry on the way I am, I'll wear the jaw away until I can not have any false teeth or implants etc.)

#11 Post by **AndyH** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 5:00 pm

I'm not particularly ashamed to say I did it for cosmetic reasons. I was never very happy with my profile and that was my main reason to get it sorted. I would now say it was 100% worth it at 3 weeks post op. Perhaps a shallow and vain reason but well I'm happy and that's what counts.

Andy

#12 Post by **phil** » Mon Jul 23, 2007 7:34 pm

I have been lurking in this thread for quite a while, and decided finally to put in my two cents.

From the beginning, I have always said that in the end, if I have a bite that is comfortable, stable, functional, and somewhat aesthetically pleasing, I would be happy. I suppose that is still true. I must admit that there was a time in my life when I was extremely self conscious of my severely prognathic jaw. As of recent years, I am happy to say that I had grown used to it, and accepted it as part of my identity. I finally found myself in a position financially to be able to go through this work, and it also happened to be a good time for other reasons. So, in the interest of my overall health, I commenced with treatment a year ago.

Now that the surgical component is finally under my belt, I have to admit that I have somewhat mixed feelings about it. Don't get me wrong--I have no regrets, and I can even see a huge difference in my appearance for the better. It's just that when you've lived with a face for over forty years, it does become familiar. I would never discourage someone from having this work done who has the financial ability, and feels that it truly will improve your life. Do, however, be prepared to deal with the psychological component, especially if you anticipate that surgery will result in a drastic change in your appearance (and I think this is the case for me). I'm happy with the changes thus far, but more often than not, I still do double-takes in front of mirrors, not really recognizing the face I see.

One of my biggest concerns in regards to my appearance was that I would come back to church on Sunday, and that my two year old goddaughter would not know me when she saw me. That would have been devastating! I am very happy and relieved to report that she recognizes me just fine!