5.5 Month Post-Op and need advice
I want to briefly share my experience from my double jaw surgery and genioplasty as well as share the complications I have encountered thus far. I am only speaking from my own, personal experience and am in no way trying to discourage anyone who is considering jaw surgery. Some of the complications I have experienced are also quite rare and I want to acknowledge that up front.
I am going to try and keep this relatively brief as it has all been quite overwhelming but am happy to clarify anything or add additional info that I may have missed.
I had double jaw surgery, a genioplasty, and chin implant removal in July 2021. Had the braces put on in preparation, had a bone scan to rule out TMJ and was good to go. The surgery took about 3.5 hours. The first few days were incredibly rough. I was unable to sleep due to a severe inner ear pain that would throb when I would lay back. I also noticed a major lump of swelling above that ear towards my temple. Asked the doctor about it and he said it was fine so I tried to be patient and give it time.
Around week 3 I noticed that my two lower lateral incisors (teeth 23 & 26) had suddenly turned grey. After speaking with my surgeon and dentist I went into an endodontist and learned that those teeth had likely died due to the trauma of the surgery. I suspect it may have also had something to do with the location of the screws that were placed from the genioplasty. On the x-ray they are directly below those exact teeth. Nothing could be done at that moment so I was sent home to wait it out some more.
Around the 8th week I was well aware I was still lagging behind the benchmarks of opening. I could barely open wider than a single finger width. I was doing the stretching exercises but it felt like I was pushing against a brick wall. Each time I had reached out to my oral surgeon he would tell me I was guarding and I should stop worrying. Come week 10, I was in physical therapy because I could still barely open any wider than before. Over the course of a month I could finally open to 2 finger width but the progress had plateaued. I had full range of motion moving my lower jaw to the right but almost 0 movement to the left. This was odd as it seemed to be another connection to my right joint acting different (remember the swelling and ear pain there). I reached out to my doctor again but he began to stop responding. I assume he thought I was acting like the boy who cried wolf. Come to learn that when I requested my medical records he had actually added that I “came in more often than other patients and was encouraged to not dwell on recovery and start moving on with my life”. I completely agree that I reach out more than the average patient, but I also know that I have seemed to have more complications than the average patient as well.
As of now, I can open no more than 30mm (just a bit more than 2 finger width). I have been in to see a TMJ specialist in the same practice. All he has said is that something does not look right in the scan of my joint that was done that same day. I asked him if he would compare the current scan to the previous one as I felt I could draw a line in the sand as to when this all started happening. The doctor said he didn’t have the previous scan available to view but did not seem eager to entertain the notion that this was caused by the surgery. He told me that the right jaw joint is supposed to unhinge and then slide but mine is not sliding. He says the bone looks too steep for it to slide out of. I still can’t understand how that could be possible since I have never had a problem opening or moving my jaw in the past. I have exhausted my PT visits and am so incredibly exhausted from this entire thing. I am experiencing so much discomfort and am not okay with the notion that was suggested that this may be the most I can ever open from now on.
I am desperate for relief and just want to be able to open my mouth fully again. My surgery was not covered my insurance and this just keeps getting more and more expensive. If anyone could offer any advice as to finding a solution to this I would be grateful to hear those suggestions. I feel very discouraged by this whole process and feel like my jaw surgeon was gaslighting me. He still refuses to see me until the Spring of 2022 to take final pictures and then release me.
Edit: I want to also add that I have been pretty discouraged by the results too. When the chin implant was removed, it was done so through the inside of the mouth. I guess when they stitched that back up it caused my lower lip to retract and become much less prominent. Now my upper lip sticks out much further than the lower lip and makes it incredibly difficult to keep my lips closed together. It just looks very unnatural. The implant was originally placed from the outside just under the chin.