Re: what is a lefort?

[Guest guest]

Hey, Joanne - Sounds like you will have a nice long list of questions

for your OMS by the time your appointment in September gets here. I

had two lists: one entitled " Questions " and one entitled " General

Concerns/Topics for Discussion " . Dr. was pleasantly surprised

when he saw my lists being removed from my file folder. Here's some

of the things I had on my lists: under General Concerns: Fixation

used - Rigid Internal Fixation,splint,bands,wired shut; Fear of

vomiting; swelling; adequate amount of pain control; have enough

space to insert tubing of Zip'N Squeeze bag; and Parathesia(numbness)

becoming permanent. Some of my questions included: What form of

fixation will be used? How long?; Will there be any external scars?;

How long will I be off of work? I had info from the Zip'N Squeeze

website - my OMS had never heard of them before, so he made a copy of

the info. I invested in a canvas file folder - one with twelve

compartments - it zips closed. I keep all sorts of info in it;

examples of some of the compartment titles include: insurance info

(copy of my policy & coverage & any EOB's or claim forms); notes from

my appointments; Orthognathic Surgery info (copies of pertinent

articles); OMS info (copies of forms filled out at OMS office); OD

info (copies of articles and info about braces). I also store a

notepad and pen in it. Dr. was noticeably impressed with the

contents of my folder, and he knew that I had come to the appointment

prepared.//You mentioned that your OMS mentioned screws and plates;

those are used in Rigid Internal Fixation or R.I.F. That is used in

the LeFort surgery as well as for the BSSO. My OMS told me that he

will use R.I.F. but screws only (2 on each side for the BSSO); he

doesn't use plates. He will also use a splint and bands (4 of them)

and will NOT wire my mouth shut. He will take the splint out after

three to four weeks. I will continue to use the bands - wear 2 during

the day and all 4 at night. He will send me back to the OD at four

weeks post-surgery to resume my ortho treatment and to get surgical

wire and hooks removed. He will see me once a week for a check-up to

see how I'm healing. First week - clear fluids. Weeks two thru four -

liquid diet: smoothies,blended soups,etc. Week five - soft foods:

pasta, mashed potatoes, etc. By week six, he wants me to eat regular

foods. It seems that all the OS's do things differently. If I think

of anything else, I'll let you know. // I'm still not sure about the

LeFort though; I'm still pretty scared of that surgery. I was

on " information overload " on Tuesday, and pretty much in shock so I

wasn't taking all the notes I usually take; I'm sure he noticed that

I wasn't myself at all. He did commend me for all the research and

reading and learning that I had obviously been doing. I think that

I'm not nearly as terrified as I was earlier in the week, but I'm

still hesitant to give him the green light on the LeFort. His

insurance/billing manager asked him if she should submit a pre-

authorization for the surgery; he looked at me and then told her to

submit for both the BSSO and LeFort. I think he is confident I will

come around to the LeFort in time, but knows I'm not there yet. The

pre-authorization, in my case, is just for laughs, as my stupid

insurance doesn't pay for the surgery (it's an excluded benefit).//

Well, that's all for now. Write back when you can. ~~ Diane- In

orthognathicsurgerysupport , " jpulaski129 "

<jpulaski129@y...> wrote:

> Hi Diane,

> One of the things I'm going to ask my surgeon is the exact

> terminology for what he plans to do. He did mention screws/plates

at

> one point, does that mean a lefort? All I know at this point is

that

> it's going to be upper and lower jaws. I have an open bite. It's so

> hard not knowing what to ask sometimes.

> I told my orthodontist that I haven't played my flute since I got

my

> braces on, and he said he never told me to stop playing, that I

> should be OK, and after everything is done I should be OK as long

as

> I faithfully wear my retainer(s). So I went home and practiced, and

> found I could play pretty good...but I had to pull back my lower

jaw

> and blow downward into the flute, which I've been doing all along

and

> is painful for my jaw joints. So this'll be something else I'll

have

> to talk to my OMS about, and I'm not seeing him til Sept.

Aaarrgghhh!

> Hope your OS puts your fears to rest

> ~Joanne

>

>

> > Hello Joanne - Hope you're having a nice weekend. I'm trying to

> > relax and get a grip on the whole LeFort situation, but I will

> > probably call Dr. next week to talk to him about it. I

don't

> > get my brackets and spacers til July 26th, and then August 9th I

> get

> > spacers out, archwires in, bands on molars, and maybe power

chains

> > on the top. So, I have a few weeks left to really enjoy eating

> > things that will soon be forbidden, like popcorn. I just want to

> get

> > this whole process started; the sooner the braces get put on, the

> > sooner I can get the surgery done (whatever procedures I actually

> > end up having: BSSO, LeFort (YUCK!), and Lipo). Thanks for the

> > support. ~~ Diane

[Guest guest]

I left you an email.

And BTW le fort is not yuckier than anything else! ;-p

Mia

-- In orthognathicsurgerysupport , " jpulaski129 " <

jpulaski129@y...> wrote:

> Hi Diane,

> One of the things I'm going to ask my surgeon is the exact

> terminology for what he plans to do. He did mention screws/plates at

> one point, does that mean a lefort? All I know at this point is that

> it's going to be upper and lower jaws. I have an open bite. It's so

> hard not knowing what to ask sometimes.

> I told my orthodontist that I haven't played my flute since I got my

> braces on, and he said he never told me to stop playing, that I

> should be OK, and after everything is done I should be OK as long as

> I faithfully wear my retainer(s). So I went home and practiced, and

> found I could play pretty good...but I had to pull back my lower jaw

> and blow downward into the flute, which I've been doing all along and

> is painful for my jaw joints. So this'll be something else I'll have

> to talk to my OMS about, and I'm not seeing him til Sept. Aaarrgghhh!

> Hope your OS puts your fears to rest

> ~Joanne

>

>

> > Hello Joanne - Hope you're having a nice weekend. I'm trying to

> > relax and get a grip on the whole LeFort situation, but I will

> > probably call Dr. next week to talk to him about it. I don't

> > get my brackets and spacers til July 26th, and then August 9th I

> get

> > spacers out, archwires in, bands on molars, and maybe power chains

> > on the top. So, I have a few weeks left to really enjoy eating

> > things that will soon be forbidden, like popcorn. I just want to

> get

> > this whole process started; the sooner the braces get put on, the

> > sooner I can get the surgery done (whatever procedures I actually

> > end up having: BSSO, LeFort (YUCK!), and Lipo). Thanks for the

> > support. ~~ Diane

[Guest guest]

Oh yes it is, Mia - I saw a video of a LeFort procedure, honey, in

living technicolor! ~~ Diane

> > > Hello Joanne - Hope you're having a nice weekend. I'm trying

to

> > > relax and get a grip on the whole LeFort situation, but I will

> > > probably call Dr. next week to talk to him about it. I

don't

> > > get my brackets and spacers til July 26th, and then August 9th

I

> > get

> > > spacers out, archwires in, bands on molars, and maybe power

chains

> > > on the top. So, I have a few weeks left to really enjoy eating

> > > things that will soon be forbidden, like popcorn. I just want

to

> > get

> > > this whole process started; the sooner the braces get put on,

the

> > > sooner I can get the surgery done (whatever procedures I

actually

> > > end up having: BSSO, LeFort (YUCK!), and Lipo). Thanks for the

> > > support. ~~ Diane

[Guest guest]

Hi Diane,

I'll have a lot of questions for my OS when I next see him, but I'm not

too worried about any one specific procedure. It really is a good idea

to write things down, as you said. I also plan to ask him about the zip

n squeeze. He may not have heard of it either.

~Joanne

> Oh yes it is, Mia - I saw a video of a LeFort procedure, honey, in

> living technicolor! ~~ Diane