I had braces as a child but found that my overbite and teeth crowding regressed as an adult. I started orthodontics (again) as an adult in early 2012. The orthodontist's plan was to use Invisalign braces for my upper teeth and fixed braces for my lower teeth. She referred me to an oral surgeon as a candidate for jaw surgery to correct my overbite. The surgeon recommended that I do a genioplasty and I believe a jawline augmentation. I ended up deciding on the jaw surgery and the genioplasty. After getting my teeth in the right spot, my jaw surgery was scheduled for December 2013. I believe the specific surgical procedure being used on the jaw is a bilateral sagittal split osteotomy of the ramus.
Jaw Surgery and Genioplasty During Orthodontic Treatment - Vancouver, BC
Tomorrow's the big day!
Less than 24 hours to go! I've stocked up on Boost, soups, puddings and jello just in case it takes a while to transition back to solid food after the surgery. I think I'm getting over the nervousness - at least until each time someone asks me if I'm nervous!
the day arrives
My surgery went ahead today as planned. I checked into the hospital at 7:30am, wheeled into the O.R. at about 9:30am, and was discharged at about 6:45pm.
The process was (so far at least!) quite painless. The only thing approximating pain so far was inserting the IV needle, which is pretty mild. My face and chin was bandaged until shortly before discharge, and while that was in place it was a bit difficult to open my mouth much - I also had elastic bands in place to help teach my jaws where to "land". It also made my face look and feel quite swollen, so I was pleasantly surprised when they took off the bandage and my face looked normal. (The patient in the bed next to me had much more swelling despite having his surgery before I did.)
The jaws and lower teeth are a bit sore, but it is much milder than having wisdom teeth removed. My only lingering concern is that I don't yet have feeling in part of my lip or my chin. I believe that's quite normal at this stage, so I'm not too worried but will feel much better when that comes back.
I suppose things may get worse tomorrow, depending on the bruising and effect of the pain meds. Will post photos in due course, but so far so good!
The process was (so far at least!) quite painless. The only thing approximating pain so far was inserting the IV needle, which is pretty mild. My face and chin was bandaged until shortly before discharge, and while that was in place it was a bit difficult to open my mouth much - I also had elastic bands in place to help teach my jaws where to "land". It also made my face look and feel quite swollen, so I was pleasantly surprised when they took off the bandage and my face looked normal. (The patient in the bed next to me had much more swelling despite having his surgery before I did.)
The jaws and lower teeth are a bit sore, but it is much milder than having wisdom teeth removed. My only lingering concern is that I don't yet have feeling in part of my lip or my chin. I believe that's quite normal at this stage, so I'm not too worried but will feel much better when that comes back.
I suppose things may get worse tomorrow, depending on the bruising and effect of the pain meds. Will post photos in due course, but so far so good!
Dr. Wittenberg has been great so far at all of my consultation visits -- I had to go back a few times since the initial consultation because, with the passage of time, I couldn't quite remember what he had planned on doing.
