Guest guest Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 , I seem to remember mini-rascal having this same problem i.e jaw opening wide at one point and then not opening as wide later on. She's had quite a few sugeries herself so perhaps it has to do with the fact that your jaw has been through quite a lot of trauma and takes longer to rehabilitate. Either way, I wish you the best of luck. Sending you a huge virtual hug. Sara Surgery June 6th, 2005 > > Hi, > > I'm five months post-op and I can only open 17 mm. At 3 months post- op I was able to open 20mm and my surgeon said that by the next appt he wanted me to be able to open 26mm that was three months 2 weeks post op. I was only able to open 19 mm then and he wasn't too concerned but now I can only open 17mm despite doing jaw exercises. > > Has anyone else had this problem? > > > > > --------------------------------- > Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Hi Sara, I went very conservative in doing exercises, all I did for the first 3 months was simple stretching. Nothing like the tongue depressor exercises where you try to force things open. This was how my ortho wanted me to proceed. My surgeon actually did give me some standard exercises, but I didn't do them, on the advice of my ortho. At the 3 month point, the ortho said " you've got to use it or lose it " , so he gave me some resistance exercises to do. They're very simple. Just close your mouth, put a soft fist under your chin, and try to open against it, without moving your mouth or opening your mouth, if you can. Then put the soft fist beside your chin and try to open against it, again without moving your mouth or opening your mouth. Repeat on the other side of your chin. It's pretty simple. This really exercises the muscles involved in opening, rather than forcing the jaws open, which is just a stretch, I think. My ortho said to do these exercises while watching tv, during the commercials. Since there are so many commercials on tv, I had lots of opportunities for practice! (we won't talk about my tv habit, which I'm trying to give up) Within a month or so, I was opening wider. According to my surgeon, my mouth opening is actually greater than it was pre-op. A caution: if you are post-op, please do NOT do any exercises unless you have cleared it with your surgeon or ortho. Everyone's healing is different, and it may be detrimental to your healing process. Hope that helps, > > Hi, > > I'm five months post-op and I can only open 17 mm. At 3 months post-op I was able to open 20mm and my surgeon said that by the next appt he wanted me to be able to open 26mm that was three months 2 weeks post op. I was only able to open 19 mm then and he wasn't too concerned but now I can only open 17mm despite doing jaw exercises. > > Has anyone else had this problem? > > > > > --------------------------------- > Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Hi , I had lower on July 22nd and can currently open only 18mm. I went to my OS a couple days ago and told him that my stretching had been going much better, then I seemed to hit a wall and now it is worse. He's sending me to physical therapy starting next week, 3 times a week for 4 weeks. He said the longer he waited to start it, the more scar tissue was forming, so he wanted me to start ASAP. His main concern with me is that my jaw seems to be locked on the right side. I've been experiencing the urge that somehow my joint needs to pop, and I just can't get it to do so. He said that feeling, combined with the inability to further stretch my opening, make him think my TMJ joint could be locked. After my physical therapy, if things do not improve, I will be having an MRI done, and they will contemplate another surgery to " release " my joint. Has your OS suggested possible physical therapy? My insurance is paying 100% through the end of the year because my surgery maxed me out on my deductible and co-insurance. Maybe it would be worth a try asking? Connie > > Hi, > > I'm five months post-op and I can only open 17 mm. At 3 months post-op I was able to open 20mm and my surgeon said that by the next appt he wanted me to be able to open 26mm that was three months 2 weeks post op. I was only able to open 19 mm then and he wasn't too concerned but now I can only open 17mm despite doing jaw exercises. > > Has anyone else had this problem? > > > > > --------------------------------- > Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Hi , I had lower on July 22nd and can currently open only 18mm. I went to my OS a couple days ago and told him that my stretching had been going much better, then I seemed to hit a wall and now it is worse. He's sending me to physical therapy starting next week, 3 times a week for 4 weeks. He said the longer he waited to start it, the more scar tissue was forming, so he wanted me to start ASAP. His main concern with me is that my jaw seems to be locked on the right side. I've been experiencing the urge that somehow my joint needs to pop, and I just can't get it to do so. He said that feeling, combined with the inability to further stretch my opening, make him think my TMJ joint could be locked. After my physical therapy, if things do not improve, I will be having an MRI done, and they will contemplate another surgery to " release " my joint. Has your OS suggested possible physical therapy? My insurance is paying 100% through the end of the year because my surgery maxed me out on my deductible and co-insurance. Maybe it would be worth a try asking? Connie > > Hi, > > I'm five months post-op and I can only open 17 mm. At 3 months post-op I was able to open 20mm and my surgeon said that by the next appt he wanted me to be able to open 26mm that was three months 2 weeks post op. I was only able to open 19 mm then and he wasn't too concerned but now I can only open 17mm despite doing jaw exercises. > > Has anyone else had this problem? > > > > > --------------------------------- > Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 Hi and Sara! Yes, I did have a lot of problems with opening after my orthognathic surgeries. I wasn't able to open at all and could only force it 6 mm three months post-op. My problems were with the joints, though. An MRI showed that the left condyle was completely eroded away and the right joint was fused. After several TMJ surgeries, I finally had bilateral joint replacements in June. Now my opening is 17-20 mm after six weeks of aggressive physical therapy. My surgeon is satisfied with that and it does allow me to eat a soft diet. Because of all the surgeries, my muscles have really atrophied and shortened so I will probably never get much more of an opening. Maybe your opening is still so limited because on the ongoing infections. Is your surgeon concerned about your joints? What does he say about your limited opening? Have you had TMJ problems in the past? My joints had been locking since childhood so by the time I had my orthognathic surgeries the joints were already in bad shape. I hope you finally start to feel better soon and get those pesky infections under control. You've been through so much already. minirascal- > > > > Hi, > > > > I'm five months post-op and I can only open 17 mm. At 3 months post- > op I was able to open 20mm and my surgeon said that by the next appt > he wanted me to be able to open 26mm that was three months 2 weeks > post op. I was only able to open 19 mm then and he wasn't too > concerned but now I can only open 17mm despite doing jaw exercises. > > > > Has anyone else had this problem? > > > > > > > > > > --------------------------------- > > Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 Hi Minirascal ! My surgeon is concerned about my mouth opening and wants to wait until I have the scans done so he can see if there's a problem. I haven't had any TMJ issues in the past, it could have something to do with the re-occuring infections. I see my surgeon on Tuesday and will mention it to him again. Thanks! --------------------------------- Yahoo! Music Unlimited - Access over 1 million songs. Try it free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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