Is there anything I can do about opening my jaw and numbess?

[Gabrielle]

So I had a lefort, bsso, and genioplasty all done in late June of 2016. I'm 6 months post op now. Everything has gone fine aside for two things. I can still barely open my mouth past two fingers, and I have numbness lingering on my chin and lower lip.

I was wondering if there was anything at all that I could do to get my jaw to open wider? I can't eat a lot of things like burgers still which is a pain.

Also, how long would it be until I know if this numbness is permanent? It still tingles every now and then but those days are few and far between. I can feel pressure for the most part, and it tingles when touched except for on my lip.

I'm fine with it I guess, but I'd really prefer if there was anything I could do to help this. It's made me insecure to eat in front of people because I won't know if food is on me, and it's negatively impacted my relationship with my boyfriend because it's now more of a chore to kiss him or anything. It's become an annoyance, so any help is appreciated

[Suziesue83]

Hi I had ortho surgery on my lower and have the same as you, this was 8 weeks ago, I discovered you can get slipped discs in your jaw ( disc displacement without reduction), the disc jams the jaw preventing it opening properly. I too have awful numbness I'm fairly certain that it's the disc pinching nerves as whilst I was warned of numbness the surgeon said I'd barely notice, well I certainly notice this and often get the sensation I'm dribbling!
I haven't had an MRI yet but my ortho agrees that the disc might be displaced causing the tmj.
His advice was, no hard foods, stopping any active brace treatment, jaw relaxation techniques. No luck so far but I'll stick with it. I'd love to hear from you or others if anything else works!! How's yawning for you? For me it's hell, my excuse to sleep loads!! Xx

[Gabrielle]

[quote="Suziesue83"]Hi I had ortho surgery on my lower and have the same as you, this was 8 weeks ago, I discovered you can get slipped discs in your jaw ( disc displacement without reduction), the disc jams the jaw preventing it opening properly. I too have awful numbness I'm fairly certain that it's the disc pinching nerves as whilst I was warned of numbness the surgeon said I'd barely notice, well I certainly notice this and often get the sensation I'm dribbling!
I haven't had an MRI yet but my ortho agrees that the disc might be displaced causing the tmj.
His advice was, no hard foods, stopping any active brace treatment, jaw relaxation techniques. No luck so far but I'll stick with it. I'd love to hear from you or others if anything else works!! How's yawning for you? For me it's hell, my excuse to sleep loads!! Xx[/quote]

Yawning definitely gives an ache, but it's no more than what it is to eat for me. I hope things turn out well for you! I'm not sure if it's a disk problem for me, but I was planning on talking to my surgeon about it once I see him again. I know I couldn't open my mouth very wide before the surgery, but I feel like this is a bit excessive if it's getting in the way of every day tasks. I don't see him until I get my braces off though so it'll be a few months unfortunately. If it's only been 8 weeks post-op for you though I think you'll definitely get some movement and feeling back soon escpecially if you have that tingling, running water feeling over where you're numb.

[fixmenow]

Hey Gabrielle, I'm only 7 weeks post op and am schedule to start Jaw Physio once I'm 8 weeks in, to help me retrain my jaw so it opens wide again. Have you seen a physiotherapist yet?

[Gabrielle]

[quote="fixmenow"]Hey Gabrielle, I'm only 7 weeks post op and am schedule to start Jaw Physio once I'm 8 weeks in, to help me retrain my jaw so it opens wide again. Have you seen a physiotherapist yet?[/quote]

I haven't. Honestly I didn't even know you could go to anyone to help with opening your jaw. Since my surgery I've only gone to see my surgeon two times and I've gone to my orthodontist plenty of times, but that's it. I'll definitely look into doing that now that you mention it though, so thanks!

[jaime]

Definitely look into it! There's another thread on the front page of the Oral Surgery forum right now about going to physio after jaw surgery. I went for a few months and it helped me be able to open my jaw bigger and also be less achy after chewing.

[fixmenow]

I was recommended to see one by my orthodontist, my first appointment is Feb 13th, I'll be posting in the other thread called "Is TMJ physio absolutely necessary post-op?" that jamie mentioned, you should chime in.

I'd ask your surgeon or orthodontist first if they have any recommendations as to where to go, they should have a connection to a physiotherapist that specializes in the jaw and TMJ. If they don't know anyone, try to find a TMJ clinic near by and give them a call and explain what is going on. I'm sure they have TMJ physiotherapists within there clinic. If you live somewhere that doesn't have a TMJ clinic close by, call a TMJ clinic further away and ask them if they have any recommendation close to where you live. If that doesn't work, call PT clinics and ask questions about the PT before going, you want someone who knows about the jaw and jaw ROM. Good luck!