Lower Jaw 6mm Advancement Post Op Recap - One Guy's Story

[CanadianRyan]

I've been a lurker in these forums for the last 6 months leading up to my surgery, which was last week (May 13th). I can't thank you guys enough for sharing your experiences. It definitely helped with mine. I thought I'd return the favor by quickly summing up my experience so far and answering any questions that anyone might have.

ABOUT ME
I'm 27 years old and in fairly good shape, although I don't work out regularly (6'4", 210lbs). I had my lower jaw advanced 6mm forward to compensate for an overbite.

THE SURGERY (Cost CAD $4500)
The procedure took approximately 1.5 hours. It would have been faster but the surgeon had to re-screw the 3 screws on each side (6 in total) 4 times! He told me afterwards that it was because my muscles were really fighting the move (his previous record was 3 times). They inserted the screws through my cheeks. I know this sounds weird and gross but that's about it. You honestly can't even tell. There was one stitch on each cheek and I never felt anything after the surgery.

They gave me something to breathe through a mask that knocked me out before they even put the IV in so that part was easy. I woke up a little stiff and just a little sore on one side but eager to go home. I was out of the office at noon and talking to my parents on the phone on the way back home (probably not the best idea). I was tight-banded in the front. It'll have to stay that way for 5-6 weeks so that the muscles don't get their way and pull it back. I can take them off (2 bands) to eat and as long as they're in for 20 hours a day, I'm okay. I'm already used to taking them on and off so that's no big deal anymore and I could care less of what other people think when I talk.

The surgeon said the nerve(s) looked good and didn't get severed or anything although my front lower teeth, lower lip, and chin are still numb. I'm assuming this is because the nerves got stretched pretty good. Hopefully, I get the feeling back in my face over the next 6-12 months. It sucks a bit but I seem to have gotten used to it but like a lot of other people say, kissing my girlfriend is the worst part.

PAIN, SWELLING, & NUMBNESS
Pain was minimal to none. Looks like I got pretty lucky. I was given Ibuprofen and Tylenol 3s to take following the surgery. The pain was so minimal that I never took a single Tylenol 3 (I took Ibuprofen 4 times a day for the first 4 days for the swelling more than the pain) and I only take a Ibuprofen in the middle of the night if I wake up from sleeping on my side. I wasn't on the ball with icing my face so it probably only got a total of an hour and a half of icing per day for the first 2 or 3 days. I haven't been tired since the surgery although I took the rest of the week off to take it easy. Swelling seems to be down quite a bit from day 2/3 where it peaked.

DIET
Liquid diet for the first 3 days of Ensure (Butter Pecan, yum!), Low Sodium v8, Organic grape juice, soups, then moved to Apple Sauce and pasta. Now I pretty much eat anything that I can cut small enough (ex. chinese food, chicket SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM SPAM, raw rhubarb, fries, pizza). Also worth noting is that I've lost a fair bit of my sense of taste! This sucks but I'm sure it'll slowly come back to me over the next while.

Let me know if you have any questions. To all those considering a similar surgery, be aware of the risks with numbing. Once you've accepted those risks, then it's pretty much easy sailing if you're like me although your miles may vary. Here are some pics and random notes I added:


- Look at that sexy overbite!


(Tuesday)



(Wednesday)



(Thursday)
- Went for a 10 block walk
- The day I realized I may be related to Quagmire from Family Guy


(Friday)
- Had my first 2 post-op alcoholic drinks (Gin & Tonic and Vodka Soda)


(Saturday)
Took the motorcycle out and went for a short ride around town once the swelling was down enough to put my helmet back on.


(Sunday)
- Played baseball (ran around and caught pop flies in the outfield) all afternoon
- Some bruising appeared on my neck and upper chest but no pain at all


(Monday)
- Went for a 250km motorcycle ride through the mountains
- Most of the swelling is gone

Most important thing, stay positive and know it'll all turn out okay. Smile and if it doesn't look appealing to you right now, laugh at yourself because you won't get another chance to once it looks all fixed up and good to go!

[Andantae]

Thanks for taking the time to make that post, Ryan. It was very informative and helpful, not to mention AWESOME results--you must be so pleased!

[brendan]

The surgeon said the nerve(s) looked good and didn't get severed or anything although my front lower teeth, lower lip, and chin are still numb. I'm assuming this is because the nerves got stretched pretty good. Hopefully, I get the feeling back in my face over the next 6-12 months. It sucks a bit but I seem to have gotten used to it but like a lot of other people say, kissing my girlfriend is the worst part.

whats up ryan

was wondering if you could expand on this?

The lower lip numbness etc messes up your ability to kiss?

[CanadianRyan]

Sure...

Apparently for lower jaw surgery, it's quite common to come out of it with some amount of numbness (my surgeon was quite clear about this) as the nerve that runs along the bottom of the jaw on both sides gets stretched. If this nerve is severed (which I hear is quite rare), there is a good chance of permanent numbness. Sorry, don't mean to scare anyone but just stating the worse case scenario, which is quite rare and honestly, I'm pretty sure I could cope if things didn't improve with me right now. In most cases however, it's simply just stressed because of the stretching and requires time to fully heal.

I've read somewhere that the nerves heal very slowly, which explains the 6 to 12 month that people seem to have to wait in order for the numbness to go away.

Over the first few days, it feels as though you just came back from the dentist and been frozen (exact same feeling). I found it a little annoying at first, while waiting for it to "thaw out" and get feeling back. I'm sure a lot of people would think that it would be horrible to experience this type of numbing for more than a few days given their prior experience with visits to the dentist but after about day 3, I got used to it and could drink and talk normally and my face moves as if nothing is wrong with it. Shaving this morning was a little unnerving but I'm sure I'll get it down with more practice. The only negative so far, other than kissing my girlfriend, is chapped lips. Against others advice of using lip balm or Vaseline, I've been lazy and left things as they are. They're getting better though. So I'm sure this can be easily avoided.

As for kissing my girlfriend, I can still do it, although it feels weird and awkward right now because i can't feel my lower lip. It's funny because you know that your bottom lips are touching but you can't feel it. Very important to remember that even if your numb, you still have muscle control so your lip and chin aren't dead or anything! With practice, I'm sure my girlfriend won't be able to tell the difference. I've heard a lot of other people discuss this as well but I'm sure with a little time, I'll either make it work or the numbing will go away.

I keep on thinking that I'm starting to get a little feeling on my lower lip on the right side but that could be wishful thinking. I'll definitely post updates if... when I get some feeling back, haha. I do notice weird sensations in my lip and chin (ex. twitching) after I lie down to go to bed. I take this as a good sign that things are trying to work themselves out in there somehow (maybe just the muscles but hopefully the nerves too if I can feel the twitching in those spots).

Sorry for the bad drawing but everything in black and white is where I'm numb right now:



I know the picture makes it seem bad but it really isn't. Just like the surgery itself, it's much worse waiting for it than it is after the procedure's been done... except I could really go for a rack or ribs right now, heh heh. As always, let me know if you have any other questions. I'll be more than happy to answer!

Ryan

[CanadianRyan]

Hey Meryaten,

I checked out those links, great info, thanks a lot! I managed to get my x-rays from the surgeon and can post them up (whenever I can grab them from work) if anyone's interested.

Ryan

[jmrut22]

Hey Canadian Ryan
I am exactly 2 weeks post op today (thursday). My lower was advanced 5mm on one side, 6mm on the other. I am numb in exaclty the same spot as you. Not a whole lot though and to be honest with you I was so swollen I didnt notice it at first. My lip is not numb except underneath and down my chin. Its getting better each day, but one little patch on my chin is extremely numb. I bet shaving is weird, trying to put make up on the chin is weird too!!!!

You look great.

Jmrut22

[jawbreaker]

I can definitely see the changes in your profile pic, nice result.

[nullalux]

Thanks so much for posting. This is really inspiring!

[spongeWorthy]

lol, i just noticed the quagmire pic and just about spit water all over my desk.

very similar experience to me (im 27, lower jaw advancement, numb in the same place, pretty easy recovery so far).
almost 8 weeks post-op and aside from the numbness in lower lip and chin i feel and look pretty normal.

kinda regret not taking daily pics now, but at the time i just really wanted to hurry up and get back to normal with as little fuss as possible.

results look great man.

[Teeth29]

Hi Canadian Ryan,

Thanks for posting up your pics they look great and you can really see the difference 6mm can make!

I am in fact considering the same operation. Lower jaw 6 - 8mm.

So I"m doing the same research as you before deciding on whether or not to pursue this procedure as its not necessary except for aesthetic reasons. And since I've got braces on its a good time to consider it.

I'm 29 at this point

I was wondering in your time doing your research. Are there any long term effects. Say 10 years time. Do you in fact have a weaker lower ? more acceptable to injury?

I dont play any contact sports however it's just good to know.

Also did you have your wisdom teeth extracted at the same time? or was this a separate operation before the lower jaw surgery.

Thanks heaps

Aussie Teeth29

[CanadianRyan]

Teeth29,

Sorry about the long wait in my response.

I was wondering in your time doing your research. Are there any long term effects. Say 10 years time. Do you in fact have a weaker lower ? more acceptable to injury?

I honestly didn't do much research about the long-term effects. My lower jaw feels the same as it did before the surgery. The lower should be just as strong as it was before the surgery according to my surgeon. Since 6 weeks post-op, I've never even though about how it might be weaker, it just feel normal like before the surgery.

Also did you have your wisdom teeth extracted at the same time? or was this a separate operation before the lower jaw surgery?

Had my 4 wisdom teeth taken out in 2003. To be honest, the jaw surgery recovery was less painful (never used a single T3). With the wisdom teeth, I slept for 2 or 3 days in front of the fireplace in my parent's living room in quite a bit of pain.


UPDATE:
Other than about a square inch of numbness on the left side between my lip and chin, everything seems back to normal. The numbness is slowly improving but I'm happy with the changes so far. Only 3 months and the numbness has gone down dramatically. I was expecting much longer. Can't notice the difference when I eat anymore, it's been like that for quite a while now (a month or two). I can pretty much open my mouth as wide as before but it gets a little fatigued at the dentist. I've been playing beach volleyball and baseball regularly since 3 or 4 weeks after the surgery (against my girlfriend's wishes and surgeon's advice, heh heh).

[Kerry]

thansk for tour story @)

[Lirpa]

Please keep us posted. I am interested in tracking your progression.

[CanadianRyan]

4-Months Post-Op Update

Should get my braces off in the next couple of months... finally see the light at the end of the tunnel!

Here are some updated pics.





Everything seems to be going well, the numbing is down to the size of a quarter halfway between my chin and lower lip although the lower lip sometimes tingles a bit to the touch but I barely notice it.

To be honest, even with the numbness, everything feels completely back to normal and with the numbness area decreasing with time, I'm sure it'll be gone within the next 8 months. If for some reason it isn't, I can definitely live with this!

Now if my ortho and jaw surgeon could only do something about my receding hairline!

[Andantae]

Ryan, if I remember correctly, I had my BSSO about a month after you, so it is very helpful to follow your progress! I experienced very similar extent and area of numbness, so I'm glad to hear that your numbess is down to a quarter size now. I, too, could deal with it fine if it were to stay this way ('cept my lip) but happy to learn that I can probably look forward to a continued lessening, too.

Your BSSO turned out fabulous---you must be so thrilled!