Jaw Surgery For Cosmetic Reasons?

[MissHello97]

Hello everyone,
(Im new here)

So I have a couple questions. Would it be possibly to have a surgeon perform jaw surgery on someone with a normal bite but who could benefit largely from it for cosmetic reasons?

I went to see an orthodontist for a consultation and he told me that my bite was fine, that I only needed braces for cosmetic reasons. I feel that my mid-face is flat, causing my eyes to appear very large. My bottom jaw/chin area is also very large. The chin juts out. I do have a slight lisp. Also, when I smile or laugh, I feel as though my upper jaw is a little long and so I tend to cover my mouth when I laugh. I am very self conscience about this. I have been made fun of and teased by a couple people when I was younger (I'm in my 30s now) and it stuck with my emotionally. People have called me "Mac Tonight" and "Stretch Face" before. I may not be an extreme case but am HIGHLY interested in maybe having a Lefort 2 done as well as a chin reduction.

I have heard that Arnett and Gunson are the best and so I was going to schedule a consultation with them but I've heard that they only work on people who have bite or airway problems. Does anyone know if this is true? I've also heard that they are super expensive but at this point in my life I don't care and will find a way to pay for this surgery! (I am super self conscience and get very depressed about my looks)

Also, who are the next GO-TO surgeons if one can not afford Arnett and Gunson?

I've seen before and afters of jaw surgery and I cant help but imagine how ones quality of life can change after this surgery.

Anyone with any information, PLEASE LET ME KNOW. Id also like to hear your thoughts and options. Thanks in advance.

[MissHello97]

here is a link to a photo to help you have an idea of what my issues are

https://imagizer.imageshack.us/v2/339x3 ... ZMycEO.jpg

[mmkay]

THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. THIS IS SPAM PLEASE REPORT IT TO THE ADMINISTRATOR. the attitude of surgeons is "we'll operate because you have bite issues, but given we are operating we will fix the cosmetic stuff too". But Arnett/Gunson's office staff should be able to tell you.

You clearly have a gummy smile. On that specific part surgery isn't necessarily the only option. It is possible to intrude the entire upper dentition:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3694207/
http://link.springer.com/article/10.100 ... 9-z#page-1

This can mimic a lefort 1 impaction (advancement is a different story).

It really depends on your case. However note that it's only going to be a subgroup of orthodontists that offer this sort of treatment.

It may be that with innovative orthodontic treatment and plastic surgery you can get a "good enough" outcome e.g. 3 out of 4 ain't bad.

[sirwired]

You sure you don't mean you want a 2-piece LeFort I? An actual LeFort II Osteotomy is a VERY rare operation; it's very complicated, takes 8 hours, blood transfusions, and involves your entire face from your eyelids to your lips. I'm pretty sure you'd have a tough time finding a surgeon outside a major academic medical center to even try.

As far as surgeon's go... Your best bet is to ask your orthodontist for a referral to a surgeon he/she works with regularly that is on your insurance list. I think communication between the ortho and surgeon (and the ortho's knowledge of surgical outcomes) is far more important than incremental differences in surgical technique. Mine was done by a faculty member at the local dental school that my ortho knew very well. My surgeon, ortho, general dentist, and myself are all thrilled with how things turned out.

[lissybear22]

Not to argue, but from what I can see you have a very cute face. However, you are the one who has to be happy with it, so I won't say any more!

[snapdresser]

MissHello97, you were asking if you can have orthognathic surgery done for purely cosmetic reasons and the answer is YES. Your insurance won't cover it in that case unless there are other symptoms as well, but many orthognathic surgeons don't take insurance anyways. However, without insurance, the cost for orthognathic surgery can be pretty ridiculous. I've seen people say theirs costed $20k-$50k+, depending on what all was done. Some docs offer discounts for people paying out-of-pocket or with cash up front. Dental schools may be another option to make it more affordable. You may want to look at symptoms for your condition first, and make sure you don't qualify for insurance coverage before you basically take out a car loan to pay for elective surgery... Just my opinion!

[Mark11]

Yes, you can have jaw surgery for cosmetic reasons. As for insurance, I don't think jaw surgeries, if they are not life threatening, are covered by insurance.
I will do a SARPE surgery soon and a major lower jaw surgery some time after because my jaw is terribly misaligned but I don't know if you really, really need to.
The recovery will not be comfortable, it will hurt a lot, you will eat liquid food for a few months. If you think this if worth it it's your decision.

[sirwired]

Yes, you can have jaw surgery for cosmetic reasons. As for insurance, I don't think jaw surgeries, if they are not life threatening, are covered by insurance.
I will do a SARPE surgery soon and a major lower jaw surgery some time after because my jaw is terribly misaligned but I don't know if you really, really need to.
The recovery will not be comfortable, it will hurt a lot, you will eat liquid food for a few months. If you think this if worth it it's your decision.

Plenty of people here, including myself, have gotten their surgery covered by insurance. And recovery is not fun, but not "months of liquid food" rough.

[MissHello97]

Hello everyone and thank you for your post, they are very much appreciated.
I have a question for you guys, as I have said before, basically, I am self conscience about my face,
I feel as though I have a gummy smile (upper jaw being kinda long) and my face looks long and flat and my lower jaw/chin is large and sticks out.
I am trying to see how much Gunson & Arnett in Santa Barbra will charge but I've heard that their prices are crazy. (anywhere from 40 to over 100 thousand dollars!) I've also heard that they are the best when it comes to jaw surgery. So, my question for everyone here is ...if you could not afford Arnett & Gunson, who would be the top 5 surgeons in California to go see?

I dont think insurance is going to pay to get my gummy smile fixed but we will see.

[sirwired]

Your best bet is to have an orthodontic consult and ask your orthodontist for a referral to the surgeons he/she usually works with. Arnett and Gunson are good, but they are hardly the only qualified surgeons in California.

[MissHello97]

i was referred to Arnett & Gunson by my orthodontist but Im trying to get a feel of other surgeons out there via other patients experiences.

[Gkc08]

[quote="sirwired"][quote="Mark11"]Yes, you can have jaw surgery for cosmetic reasons. As for insurance, I don't think jaw surgeries, if they are not life threatening, are covered by insurance.
I will do a SARPE surgery soon and a major lower jaw surgery some time after because my jaw is terribly misaligned but I don't know if you really, really need to.
The recovery will not be comfortable, it will hurt a lot, you will eat liquid food for a few months. If you think this if worth it it's your decision.[/quote]

Plenty of people here, including myself, have gotten their surgery covered by insurance. And recovery is not fun, but not "months of liquid food" rough.[/quote]

To be fair, it is very difficult to get it covered. I got lucky because my insurance is known for approving them (in fact, I decided to pick that insurance BECAUSE of that reputation), but for most people it's a battle.

And for some double-jaw surgeries, yes, it is "months of liquid food" rough

[goku]

No surgery is 100% fool proof. You don't even know what you will look like after the surgery.
Which means you really dont know if you'll like the way you look post-surgery more than you did pre-surgery.
And I haven't even mentioned month long recovery times and liquid diets. Surgery isn't fun.
If you think it's worth the risks and the sesame healing phase, go for it.

[MissHello97]

Thanks everyone for your reply. This is something that I am fully prepared to go through.
I would like to know everyone's experience. Who was your doctor? Who was the outcome? What were the cost?
Did insurance pay for it? If so, what was the name of your insurance?

[snapdresser]

MissHello97, you should search the forums for that info. It gets rehashed continuously.