Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi forum, I'm new here, this is my first post.
I'm a 37 year old male.
Right now I'm trying to decide on SARPE or Wilckodontics. I have seen two sets of doctors. One set wants me to do SARPE, one set wants me to do Wilckodontics.
I'm extremely confused on which surgery is the right one for me to do. It's almost impossible to get quantitative answers to certain questions that I think would determine which surgery to do. For example, how much expansion of my maxilla do I need? How much expansion of the maxilla can SARPE provide, compared to Wilckodontics? How much jaw bone loss do I have?

One of the orthodontists I see said that I need 5-7mm of maxilla expansion, and that Wilckodontics could not achieve this. He also said my bone loss is not that bad, so Wilckodontics is not necessary. He recommends SARPE.

However....A periodontist said I have significant bone loss and need to do Wilckodontics. He said SARPE is the "old method", and Wilckodontics is the newer, better method. He said with Wilckodontics, there is no tooth gap, and the treatment is much faster overall (8 months versus 2 years).

I don't know who to believe. Both are well educated doctors, well respected.

I've finally asked these two sets of doctors to speak to each other, and I'm waiting to hear back from them.

The costs of each procedure are ridiculously high.
SARPE = $6,500 surgery + $3,000 anesthesia + $7,265 braces + $6,000 gum grafts = $22,765
Wilckodontics = $6,100 braces + $9,900 surgery + $3,400 anesthesia = $19,400

I really do NOT want to do SARPE based on the youtube videos I've seen of patients who had SARPE. The gap between their front teeth makes me unbearably scared. Also, the amount of swelling and bruising that the patients get after the surgery is also scary.

The Wilckodontics seems much easier, because it would be over in half the time... with no tooth gap. But...if it really is true that Wilckodontics cannot solve my problem, because it cannot achieve the necessary amount of dental arch expansion....then I'd have to bite the bullet and do SARPE.

Has anyone else been in a similar situation where they had to decide between these 2 surgeries? I could really use some honest advice from a patient (not a doctor trying to sell me on a surgery).

Thank you very much for you help.

I would definitely go with Wilckodontics if it would give you the required result - much easier surgery and recovery. $13.5k for the surgery though - ouch, that's a LOT. Would have expected it to be $8-11k.

Myself I'm tossing up between wilckodontics, segmental supapical osteotomy and a le fort 1 on the top. Upper jaw surgery scares me so much more than lower1

How bad is the recovery for SARPE? It looks pretty awful, from the youtube videos I've seen. The orthodontist who proposed SARPE to me did not make it sound like a big deal, but it looks like a big deal.

Yea the surgery is a lot of money. It's $10k for the surgery. The anesthesia adds another $3,400.

I don't know if the Wilckodontics can widen my upper jaw enough. That is the main question I need to answer. The orthodontist who proposed SARPE said I need 5-7mm of width.
The periodontist who wants to do Wilckodontics said that he believes it can widen my jaw by 3-4mm. He's not sure if Wilckodontics can widen my jaw enough. He thinks it's a close call, but still better to do Wilckodontics.

Why does upper jaw surgery scare you more than lower?

I also got presented with a wilkodontics option, and it just wasn't worth it for me in the end. The wilko I heard is REALLY painful. Like, somebody said it's worse than the jaw surgery. And for me it's going to cost me thousands and thousands more, and won't truly give me the full result like the traditional jaw surgery would. I guess every case is different though, and if your team tells you that the results will be just as great and the money is a wash for you either way, then definitely check more into the wilko.