Non-cosmetic benefits of the surgery

[Guest guest]

Hello everyone,

I'm a first time poster and am currently considering undergoing the

lower jaw advancement. I think this is an extremely interesting

support group and is very beneficial for anyone preparing to undergo

the procedure. One of the big question I've developed after

spending some time perusing the page is the extent of the non-

cosmetic benefits of the procedure from the perspective of a person

who has already gone ahead with surgery.

Many of the messages I've seen are related to preparing to deal with

the complications of surgery (rightfully so, I find the idea of

having my lower jaw cut off rather terrifying) but I'm interested in

ultimately knowing whether it is worth it. I should say that I'm

not considering the surgery for cosmetic reasons. In my particular

case, I have a regular profile despite my deep bite. And while I

don't like the way my teeth look when talking, I don't believe that

would merit undergoing surgery of this magnitude that seems to carry

what I would generally consider a large amount of risks and/or

questions pertaining to it's efficacy.

I'm considering the surgery because I have already begun to

encounter problems with sleep apnea (despite having none of the

other risk factors. In particular, I'm not overweight) and TMJ

problems. I'm concerned that these problems will begin to escalate

as I get older and believe it may be more beneficial to go ahead

with surgery now while I'm still in good shape instead of waiting

for things to get worse. However, I have yet to come across

significant evidence, scientific or otherwise, that would suggest

this surgery is very useful at rectifying either sleep apnea or TMJ

relative to alternative nonsurgical remedies such as oral sleep

appliances that advance the mandible during sleep. I'm interested

in knowing whether anyone who has undergone surgery for similar

reasons as my own can speak on whether the surgery has helped and to

what extent.

Additionally, I'm interested in knowing how prevalent relapse has

been with people post-surgery.

As a final question, I noticed in one of the documents contained in

the Files folder that one of the checksheets pertaining to what to

expect with the surgery listed hairloss in the six months after

surgery as a side effect. I find this interesting and it's not a

side effect I would expect from jaw surgery. Can anybody either

verify or refute this effect? I'm not trying to minimize the other

obviously much more significant potential adverse effects, I merely

find this particular effect rather interesting and unexpected.

I appreciate any response I get back and I've enjoyed perusing the

page. It's been very informative and reassuring, I hope it keeps

going!

Adam