Re: Another How to Begin Question

[Guest guest]

Hi, Collette,

I am 23 and have known about my crooked jaw for about 2 years

now. I had only come to realize my crooked jaw after losing a lot

of weight, and even though my jaw was only off by 3mm or so, I still

felt it was serious enough to justify getting jaw surgery. I am

going to have jaw surgery in early December and hope that everything

turns out for the better. I admit that my surgery is more for

aesthetics than for medical reasons, but the surgeon who saw me

believed the surgery would prevent future problems associated with

having asymmetry and an " off bite. " So I know how you feel about

wanting to have the surgery done. What you have to do is work in

conjunction with an orthodontist and orthognatic surgeon so that

they can give you the optimal results. I was worried the entire

time that the orthodontist would make my teeth straight and that my

insurance company would never cover the surgery, but it's the

surgeon who approves surgery, and if they see a problem with your

bite or other common problems associated with facial asymmetry, most

surgeons I have met with approve surgery.

I went to an orthodontist first, and made myself clear that my goal

ultimately was facial symmetry with a solid bite and that I wanted

my jaw straight. The orthodontist told me that he could make my

teeth straight but not my jaw and that we would work together with

an oral surgeon to give me the results I wanted.

I hope this helps. Goodluck with everything.

orthognathicsurgerysupport , " collette_inthesun "

<collette_inthesun@y...> wrote:

>

> Hi!

>

> I'm 25 and have a very crooked jaw; it's getting worse every

year. I

> had a consult with a plastic surgeon in the spring just to see if

> there was anything " superficial " they could do--because I didn't

> expect to be able to afford bone correction. He confimed that I had

> " hemimandibular hyperplasia " and suggested I ask around at

university

> hospitals to see if someone would be interested in treating it in

> connection with academic research, which might be cheaper; he said

> he'd refer me, but never did.

>

> So my question is this: do I obnoxiously call all the oral

surgeons at

> university hospitals in my area (there are a lot--I live in

Boston)?

> Or just go to an orthodontist and hope that eventually they

recommend

> surgery?

>

> It frustrates me that I stopped going to the orthodontist (age 14)

as

> soon as he noticed this; he basically dismissed me! Ugh.

>

> Cheers to all--

>

>

[Guest guest]

Sorry..your name is Q_Q

> >

> > Hi!

> >

> > I'm 25 and have a very crooked jaw; it's getting worse every

> year. I

> > had a consult with a plastic surgeon in the spring just to see if

> > there was anything " superficial " they could do--because I didn't

> > expect to be able to afford bone correction. He confimed that I

had

> > " hemimandibular hyperplasia " and suggested I ask around at

> university

> > hospitals to see if someone would be interested in treating it in

> > connection with academic research, which might be cheaper; he

said

> > he'd refer me, but never did.

> >

> > So my question is this: do I obnoxiously call all the oral

> surgeons at

> > university hospitals in my area (there are a lot--I live in

> Boston)?

> > Or just go to an orthodontist and hope that eventually they

> recommend

> > surgery?

> >

> > It frustrates me that I stopped going to the orthodontist (age

14)

> as

> > soon as he noticed this; he basically dismissed me! Ugh.

> >

> > Cheers to all--

> >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I think going to a few OD consults is a great start. In my area,

the OD consults are free. So it gave me a chance to hear several

recommendations without emptying my pocketbook. Actually, all three

of the OD's I went to recommended surgery, and seemed to be able to

tell that I had a severe problem as soon as I walked in the door.

This was a shock to me, as before last year, I had never heard that

I had ANY problem with my jaw/teeth! And I am 52 years old! lol

If you have insurance, this may be a covered item. If it isn't a

covered procedure, the OD should be able to refer you to a reputable

training hospital or clinic that might be able to help you too, or

perhaps an OMS in your area who accepts payments. And I don't think

it would be inappropriate to contact the plastic surgeons office and

remind them of the promised referral either! I don't think he

purposefully ignored making that referral, but may have simply

forgotten about it. Still, the OD consult might be a better route

to go anyway, and they would be better able to gauge the skill and

results of a reputable OMS.

Good luck with this. Let us know what you find out.

Hugs,

Fran

>

> Hi!

>

> I'm 25 and have a very crooked jaw; it's getting worse every

year. I

> had a consult with a plastic surgeon in the spring just to see if

> there was anything " superficial " they could do--because I didn't

> expect to be able to afford bone correction. He confimed that I had

> " hemimandibular hyperplasia " and suggested I ask around at

university

> hospitals to see if someone would be interested in treating it in

> connection with academic research, which might be cheaper; he said

> he'd refer me, but never did.

>

> So my question is this: do I obnoxiously call all the oral

surgeons at

> university hospitals in my area (there are a lot--I live in

Boston)?

> Or just go to an orthodontist and hope that eventually they

recommend

> surgery?

>

> It frustrates me that I stopped going to the orthodontist (age 14)

as

> soon as he noticed this; he basically dismissed me! Ugh.

>

> Cheers to all--

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I guess I'm worried about the orthodontic part because I don't have

any dental insurance. I'm also just a little imaptient: How long did

the orthodontic treatments take for you prior to scheduling surgery??

cheers,

lauren

> >

> > Hi!

> >

> > I'm 25 and have a very crooked jaw; it's getting worse every

> year. I

> > had a consult with a plastic surgeon in the spring just to see if

> > there was anything " superficial " they could do--because I didn't

> > expect to be able to afford bone correction. He confimed that I had

> > " hemimandibular hyperplasia " and suggested I ask around at

> university

> > hospitals to see if someone would be interested in treating it in

> > connection with academic research, which might be cheaper; he said

> > he'd refer me, but never did.

> >

> > So my question is this: do I obnoxiously call all the oral

> surgeons at

> > university hospitals in my area (there are a lot--I live in

> Boston)?

> > Or just go to an orthodontist and hope that eventually they

> recommend

> > surgery?

> >

> > It frustrates me that I stopped going to the orthodontist (age 14)

> as

> > soon as he noticed this; he basically dismissed me! Ugh.

> >

> > Cheers to all--

> >

> >

>