Terms Help!!!

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone! I got my date yesterday, 9/15. They're doing a LeFort 1

Osteotomy, 3 piece w/ graft and a Bilateral Saggital Split Osteotomy.

What does all that mess mean????? I'm meeting with the surgeon 8/30

but would like to formulate questions beforehand. Thanks!

[Guest guest]

I'm no surgeon, but here's my understanding. (If you'll check out the

files and links, you'll find glossaries, pictures and other

explanations that are probably more precise and better than mine.)

LeFort Osteotomy: Taking apart the upper jaw and putting it back

together. Level 1 is, if I'm remembering right, the lowest cut they

do for this; LeFort was the fellow who came up with the procedure.

Three piece with graft means that they'll cut the upper in three

pieces, and the graft means they'll use some bone -- either cadaver

bone, or bone from somewhere in your body, often the hip, or part of

the jawbone sometimes -- to fill in the gaps.

Bilateral Saggital Split Osteotomy: Takinig appart the lower jaw and

putting it back together. Saggital is the direction of the split --

from the back of the jaw toward the front. Usually they make a cut at

the back, then tease the bone apart until it can slide on itself.

Do ask the surgeon to explain all this to you, as well as whether he

wires or bands, whether he will use a splint and whether you'll have

it wired in post op. Matter of fact, you'll find lists of FAQ in the

links and/or files here, and on Fiddlesticks Geocities site.

Best,

Cammie

> Hi everyone! I got my date yesterday, 9/15. They're doing a

LeFort 1

> Osteotomy, 3 piece w/ graft and a Bilateral Saggital Split

Osteotomy.

> What does all that mess mean????? I'm meeting with the surgeon

8/30

> but would like to formulate questions beforehand. Thanks!