A little confused!

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#1 Post by **jaijai4** » Sun Nov 02, 2008 11:32 pm

Hey there Im Jai, I have so many questions and it looks like this is the right place to ask them!

Straight up my surgery is for cosmetic reasons, when I smile I show a little gum though not a lot - and my upper jaw seems too far forward. That along with my long lower face makes me feel like a horse face.

I am booked for surgery on Dec 4, and I thought Id asked the surgeon all the questions I needed to but now Im feeling like I dont even know whats going on. The letter he sent me says, '... I see it would involve a maxillary impaction, which should address the lip incompetence ... etc etc'. But I cant find any information about this. He said hes moving my upper jaw up (and back?) a bit and my lower jaw up a bit.

I just want to know exactly what the surgery involves and how its done - but theres nothing online. Can anyone elaborate for me?

Thanks!

#2 Post by **gatorseh** » Sun Nov 02, 2008 11:43 pm

Sounds like you will be having a Le Fort (the upper jaw impaction) and possibly BSSO (if he plans on doing the lower jaw).

If you google those terms or look through the posts on here you can find all kinds of stuff! Good luck.

#3 Post by **FuzzyPants** » Mon Nov 03, 2008 2:09 am

I also had a Lefort and BSSO. My upper jaw was moved up (impacted) and forward.

Your surgeon will make an incision along your upper gums where they meet the lips to get to the bone. He will cut the bone above the roots of your teeth to separate the palate and upper jaw from the bone above. He will then remove excess bone to impact the jaw when it it in its new position. Your bones will have small screws and plates to hold it in place until your bones heal. It sounds awful, but it really was not painful (for me anyway).

I did find a website before the surgery that showed step-by-step photos of the procedures. I really wish I had not seen them though.

#4 Post by **jaijai4** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 4:15 pm

Thanks, yeah it doesnt sound pretty!
Was there much pain after the surgery for you guys? And what could you eat?

#5 Post by **FuzzyPants** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 9:12 pm

There wasn't much pain for me. My throat was sore when I woke up from surgery, but for the rest of my recovery tylenol and ice/heat packs were enough to keep the discomfort down.

I was lucky enough to be in elastics and a splint that could be removed to eat. You'll definitely need to ask your surgeon whether or not your splint stays in, or if you will be banded closed. Because I could open my mouth eating was easier. I was cleared for a soft-chew diet fairly quickly and ate almost everything I did pre-op as long as it could be fork-mashed or minced into small pieces. My surgeon said that my jaw would feel it if I were to chew too hard and he was right.

For the record, I've actually gained weight since surgery.

#6 Post by **jaijai4** » Fri Nov 14, 2008 11:41 pm

Haha really? oh that sounds a lot less scary now... i checked out the pics of the surgery and it kinda just makes me feel sick thinking about it!!
Were you happy with the results you got???

#7 Post by **FuzzyPants** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 12:31 am

I am very happy with my results. The lower half of my face is in proportion with the top and having a proper bite is wonderful. I am grateful that my recovery was easy overall. It's been three months and the feeling is just starting to return to my upper gums and teeth, but no complaints! Numbness=less pain.

#8 Post by **jaijai4** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 12:58 am

Do you have any pictures?? Was your surgery for cosmetic reasons or???

I'm really excited about having a more proportionate face but im thinking I might have too high expectations!

#9 Post by **FuzzyPants** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 1:08 am

I did post x-rays and some recovery photos at the end of August. I also posted photos at the beginning of October when most of the swelling was gone. I haven't learned how to post a link to those pages yet, but if you do a search for my name they should come up.

#10 Post by **jaijai4** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 1:21 am

Wow your results look great! You must be so pleased!!!
While looking through the threads I found a girl with a similar situation to mine, my mouth also looks a lot like this:

I think this girl had braces but my mouth looks like that without braces, do you think this surgery will make a significant difference?
Sorry about the million questions!!!

#11 Post by **FuzzyPants** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 1:36 am

It looks like there is some lip incompetence/strain in that photo and a Lefort impaction does help with that.

Baileysrv (sp.? - sorry, it is way past my bedtime) had really beautiful results with her surgery too if you can find her posts.

I loved looking at before and after photos too when I first got braces and was heading for surgery. They are inspirational!

#12 Post by **MissKitten** » Sat Nov 15, 2008 5:09 pm

I just had a lefort Osteotomy [upper maxillary impaction] on novemember 6th. I had lip incompetence and lip strain that made me look like I was frowning all the time, plus a LOT of gum showing when I smiled.

The surgery went well, and I haven't been in too much pain in the jaw iteself. Mine have been my bottom teeth feeling like they're being ripped from their roots, because I have heavy duty elastics [three of them] bringing my jaw up.

Originally I only had two small bands, one on each side, but my bite wasn't lining up so he put in three heavy ones to pull my jaw forward so my teeth lined up, hence why my bottom front teeth hurt so bad. They are used to the pulling now, though, so I don't have to take any more painkillers.

The only thing that bothered me about the surgery [comfort wise] was my upper lip - it was HUGE HUGE HUGE, and split in a few places because it was so swollen. It was hard to swallow for a few hours, and I did have to breath out of my mouth for a few days until the swelling in my nose went down.

My lip incompetence is pretty much gone, it's so nice not to have to think to close my lips! I cannot really smile much yet, but I like what I can see so far.