Would you do it...

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#1 Post by **Von** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 1:21 am

..for only cosmetic reasons?Let's suppose,for all you have done the surgery and suffered other problems like clicking,tmj pain,not able to chew properly,would you still do it if you didn't had these problems,but the only problem was aesthetic?

#2 Post by **loulou123** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 3:14 am

It wouldnt have been an option for me, to have it for purely cosmetic reasons as i just couldnt have afforded all the treatment. (as im in the UK the nhs have paid)

#3 Post by **ema27** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 3:45 am

Yeah sure i would do it for cosmetic reasons alone! i would say thats 99% why i am having all this done.yes i do need jaw surgery so its not just down to cosmetic reason for me either.I went to the dentist to get my teeth sorted i was not recommended to -After nearly 20 years of living with my adult teeth not straight,after getting married having 3 kids-i thought its about time i sorted myself out for me....
Luckily for me the NHS decided to pay for treatment-if i had to folk out i would -you only live once....

#4 Post by **dubnobass** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 4:19 am

Yes - I did do it for cosmetic reasons.

Well, to be more specific - I sought treatment because I hated the fact that one of my upper second incisors stuck out at nearly 90Âº to the rest of my teeth. I was told that I had a lot of crowding, assymetry and a recessed lower jaw, and while they could straighten my teeth with braces, there was no way they'd stay straight unless I had the surgery too. I would also have had a huge Simpsons-style overjet if I hadn't had the surgery but just had the braces - it was 0mm before the braces but 12mm after the braces and before the chop.

I could very easily have lived the rest of my life with wonky teeth and a receded jaw. I had a complete overbite but could eat and chew perfectly normally and had no jaw pain. So yep, for me it was all about the cosmetics. I'm sure my orthodontists would point out my problems and describe them as functional, though. I'm not going to pretend that those are the reasons I chose to have it done, though, because they weren't.

#5 Post by **SleazyG** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 1:43 pm

Since the aesthetic consequences of having malformed jaws are so great, I'm sure most on this forum would have it done for cosmetic reasons alone, myself included, but this would depend on two conditions. 1) If the surgery was purely cosmetic in nature, insurance would never reimburse the cost, so the patient would have to be able to afford upwards of $30,000 (USD) for surgery. 2) The patient would have to have aesthetic concerns that couldn't be adequately alleviated with a simpler, cosmetic surgery, i.e. it would be much cheaper and less invasive to have a silicone chin implant inserted than to have a BSSO. Of course, "quick fix" cosmetic surgeries wouldn't solve any issues with malocclusion, but they'd be cheaper and an easier recovery.

My reasons for undergoing jaw surgery (upper and lower) were about 70% functional/medical and 30% cosmetic. Assuming I had $30,000 lying around that I couldn't find another use for, I would have the surgeries for cosmetic reasons alone. On the other hand, I would still have the surgeries even if there wasn't any cosmetic benefit. It'd be worth it just to alleviate my headaches and allow me to eat like a normal human being again. Luckily, these surgeries solve both concerns.

I'd also like to add that I am in no way disparaging people who seek these surgeries for cosmetic reasons alone. Hell, I'm having a nose-job soon and I can't wait! Anyone who chooses to endure the long, hard road of orthognathic surgery deserves support no matter what the intentions are.

#6 Post by **Arvensis** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 2:14 pm

I have to say that I never had second thoughts about not doing surgery as a teenager, and had someone not finally discovered functional issues last spring that were significant enough for me to address them through surgery, I never would have considered surgery for purely cosmetic reasons. Ever.

I *might* have eventually had the nose job that went hand in hand with the surgery b/c the extremely deviated septum and other nasal issues that were addressed at the same time as the jaw surgery.... but I'd made it to 25, been very happy with everything before that, and generally didn't care so much now that I was in a great relationship and professionally doing well. In fact, I'm rather more concerned now that I may no longer be treated as "one of the guys" now that my face is decidedly more feminine than it was before, and for the field I am going into, this worries me considerably.

But, alas, I digress. I'd have rather purchased a new car, or a jetski, or put down money on a house, or anything else, than spend the 20K I did out of pocket on my face if I didn't have to for functional reasons:)

#7 Post by **kaycee** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 3:20 pm

I would agree with everyone else, I would certainly have gone through all of this for cosmetic reasons alone but since there are functional problems too, it certainly helps that insurance is paying for the whole thing. I am 47 years old and never knew about excess vertical maxilla and retrognathic jaws, etc. I just knew I have this awful overbite, can't really swallow anything and have a perputual frown. Just today, someone told me to smile

Aaaghhh! Surgery anyone?

kaycee

#8 Post by **smile2006** » Tue Jun 10, 2008 6:01 pm

I had upper and lower jaw surgery for purely functional reasons. My insurance also covered genioplasty. I actually never thought to much about the extreme cosmetic benefits until after the surgery and I saw the results. I am very happy with the changes in my appearance and equally happy with the function I now have. I say this because I think you will ultimately find a cosmetic benefit is well worth it (if you can afford it).

#9 Post by **dubnobass** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 12:00 am

Clearly money was a big factor. Hypothetically, if your treatment had been free, do you think you would have had a different opinion?

I ask only because my treatment was free. I only looked into braces when I found out that you could sometimes get free treatment under the NHS. While I thought I'd have to pay for them, I never considered getting braces even for a second!