Hi, I found this forum from the other forums. I noticed some people here have had similar cases to mine.
When I was younger I had orthodontic work done to 'fix' a class II jaw. I had bicuspids extracted on both top and bottom and wore cervical headgear to "correct" my recessed mandible. I feel that, through the whole process my jaw and my mouth were made too small for my face, in addition to the esthetic impact, I have a hard time breathing through my nose, my jaw pops to one side when I open wide, there is some asymmetry, I get pain in my TMJ joint if I chew too much, and it just feels like my mouth is too small for my tongue. I have seen 3 orthodontists for a free consolation regarding my jaw/previous orthodontic work, but none of them could recommend jaw surgery because I have an 'adequate' occlusion.
Orthodontist one (the one who did the original orthodontic work years ago) said he couldn't see anything wrong with my jaw and he said extractions and head gear have no impact on a person's profile whatsoever. He told me if I wasn't happy about the way my profile looked I could get a chin implant. The thing is, my maxilla is recessed enough that if I were to get more pominence on my chin it would look goofy giving me an even more dished in profile.
Orthodontist two was a bit more helpful explaining the developmental phases of the jaw, and different orthodontic techniques, but ultimately he too could not recommend jaw surgery or any orthodontic work to fix this problem, he told me if I was unhappy about my profile I could consider a rhinoplasty. The thing is, although I know I have a big nose, I never saw it as a negative thing, in my opinion it is my jaw (both maxilla and mandible) that are too small for my face and that is why it looks so disproportionate.
Orthodontist three had similar opinions to the first two. He told me that all the literature he has read indicates that extractions have little to no effect on a person's profile.
I finally saw a plastic surgeon that used to work as a maxillofacial surgeon and he understood what I was talking about. He told me that in addition to a recessed maxilla and mandible I have some mid-face deficiency, which makes sense. Looking at the before and after pictures of my orthodontic treatment makes me sick to my stomach, I went from having a class II recessed mandible but otherwise normal face to having bimaxillary recession, dark bags under my eyes (at age 16) and deep laugh lines. The lower part of my face also got much more narrow from the front view and I cannot display many teeth when I smile. The recessed jaw makes my already large (roman) nose look even more huge. At 16 years old (after I had finished orthodontic work) my face just looked hollow and old (while the recessed jaw makes me look young).
I don't know, every orthodintist I have seen tells me that extractions and headgear have little impact on a persons profile and jaw growth, but I have a hard time believing that, especially when I look at my before and after pictures and family members. I have also been told that my jaws are not that recessed, but my nose appears to be too large for my face. Is jaw surgery overkill in my case? Every professional I have spoken to seems to think so. Can extractions and headgear (during adolescence) alter jaw growth, or is it merely genetics?
