Solid advice from a wiser, but more cynical veteran

October 17, 2004

Hello again,

I won't rant about my personal experiences as there is certainly a

mix of positives and negatives in my own experience. What I

would like to share are thoughts for new patients, particularly

those in the thought and contemplation about corrections. I'm

wiser and more cynical because I've spent 28 years getting to my

current point. As a patient you need to become as knowledgable

about orthodontics, oral surgeon, plastic surgery, etc. as is

reasonably possible. Most people are probably just as

concerned if not more so about an improvement in appearance

as they are in oral function. Lets face it, our personal

appearance goes a long, long ways in how we feel about

ourselves and how we're treated by others. Know from the

beginning what your ultimate objectives are. It may very well take

a number of years and different types of treatments and

procedures to obtain your goal. We all have different facial

structures, some are very straight forward to correct, others such

as mine are pretty difficult. There are variations among all

practictioners and what they will or will not do. Orthodontists fall

mostly into two camps, traditional and " progressive " . The

progressive ones will offer shorter treatment times, more

appliances instead of braces, etc. but faster treatment also risks

more gum recession from fast movements (personal

experience). Oral surgeons are much the same. I had no idea

until recently that 5 -7 mm is the maximum the most OS's will

perform on a genioplasty. However, I have located one that will

go well over 1 centimeter. If you don't need large corrections on

your chin then it's not an issue. I did though. Next, consider the

risks of oral surgery. Generally it goes very well, but nerve

damage is common. Most people recovery most or all feeling,

some do not, I still have some numbness... my surgery was ten

years ago. Finally, don't look only at your mouth, particularly if

you're wanting an appearance improvement. You might have a

nose in bad need of reshaping that is throwing everything else

off. Plastic surgeons are in the business of appearance

improvement, oral surgeons fix mouths, sometimes you get both

in one package and that's the best case scenario. After all my

efforts, jaw advancement, genioplasty, and a chin implant, I

finally look a lot better and yes my jaw function is great. Just

know what you're expecting and what its going to take to get

there.

October 17, 2004