Testimonials

Before, During & After Patient Photos 

 Class II bite

 

 

Class III bite

 

 

Anterior Open Bite

 

Our Patient's experiences

We interviewed several of our patients who were at different stages of their treatment to find out how treatment was for them.  Below are some extracts from their interviews 

Amy, 21 years old - Class II bite with Anterior Open Bite 

Why did you have orthognathic treatment?

For improved function

"I couldn't bite certain things.  I couldn't chew properly.  I had to constantly use a knife and fork even with a sandwich.

I couldn't eat sandwiches because when I used to bite into them I'd pull the bread away but no filling, so I would constantly just have to use a knife and fork.  I couldn't really eat apples without cutting them up because it was just awkward I'd end up with the juice dripping down my face because I would try and pull it apart. "  

For appearance:

"I used to look at photos think I had no chin and I just hated it, absolutely hated it."

 "It got to the point where a couple of my friends who had never said anything before said to me "Oh your jaw is quite far back!" And that's what made me think, if other people are noticing it…it's getting noticeable."

 

Recovery after Surgery

"It's weird how debilitating having jaw surgery is. You'd think, 'Oh yeah, I can still walk around, I can still move, I can still do stuff.'  But you don't want to, your head is so heavy and so sore that even bending down. My mum had to dress me that's how bad it was."

I said to myself in the first week, I said why did I have this done? I wished I'd never had it done.  But some people don't go through what I went through, some people are fine and they walk out the next day and they can eat within two weeks, they're fine.  Mine did go to plan, but my body didn't react as we would have liked.  

Two weeks and a day later you'll think 'Actually, I'm glad I've had this done!'.  It's literally a switch point where it's the first night's sleep you get, or the first thing you can do that is normal, you are like 'Oh okay, it wasn't that bad'."

  

Overall 

"People have it done for cosmetic reasons and it does boost your confidence and it does make you feel better about yourself but I'd say the biggest difference to me is just physically being able to eat foods properly.  

I don't want it to come across like it's really negative; it's really painful (the operation), now I know how major it is, it's not a pretty or nice operation but 2-3 weeks down the line and it would be the best thing that anyone's ever done if they were having trouble.

  

 

Charlie, 24 years old  - Class II bite 

On reasons why he had orthognathic treatment

For improved function:

"I was more concerned about my jaw,  is it going to cause me a lifelong problem with eating and is it going to be socially awkward?  It was a nightmare really.   Eating all my favourite foods was getting very annoying, so you bite into something and where you'd have a void in between your bite it would just only take half of what you wanted to eat, so particularly stuff like meats and steak and that sort of thing."

For appearance:

"I was more conscious of the looks side of things when it was brought up as an issue and yeah it was stuff like a photograph of you on a night out when you're smiling I was showing quite a lot of gum and that sort of thing and I, all of a sudden became quite conscious that's been happening for quite a while and I just didn't notice it"

On juggling treatment with university education

"Yes, it was a bit of a struggle.   The last year of treatment was my first year at university so I was new to the exam process again, ever since A-levels.  It was all a bit daunting, and then with this thrown into the mix.  I was using my holiday at work to do my orthodontic appointments once every couple of months.  It came to sort of December time and my first exam period was in January, so I had to apply for some extenuating circumstances.  As it happened, there was exactly a month between having my surgery and my first exam, so, although I had the extenuating circumstances in place and I didn't have to attend, I still attended. I didn't get quite as good a mark as I could have, I didn't actually pass and I had to retake, but it was all a bit of a grey area whether I'd be well enough.  The surgeon though, he was brilliant in providing letters and evidence for Uni and that sort of thing he really went out of his way to, provide extra evidence that this is actually happening and I will need these extenuating circumstances.

Recovery after surgery

"I'd say six months it took (for the swelling) to fully settle down, but once it got to a certain stage, it had died down a bit, you kind of looked a bit more normal and it's all ok, so yeah it was all right. But the first few weeks you didn't recognise yourself, it (the surgery) was amazing. 

The day of the surgery was very easy, it all went very smoothly, I came round in the recovery room and I felt fine.  I had a cup of coffee and phoned my mum on the telephone and I was thinking this is all very, very nice and plain sailing.  I obviously had painkillers and that sort of thing that night.  I was running too dry and felt a bit dehydrated so I was on a drip for a bit and then had quite a good night's sleep, the next morning the surgeon's assistant came round and just checked in with me, saw that everything was all right and that sort of thing." 

Overall

I would significantly recommend this surgery to anyone considering it. I acknowledge the fact that each case will be specific to an individual, but based upon my experience and if I had to- I would go through the entire process again! Stay positive throughout your journey and just think of how it will benefit you in the long run! Trust me, it is totally worth it!"

 

Jason, 38 years old - Uneven bite due to a previously broken jaw which was plated back together

Why did you start thinking about orthognathic surgery?

"I didn't. I had an accident, I passed out and all my weight kind of fell forwards and my jaw hit the wall.  So it broke on the bottom and on both sides as well.  I was taken to the BRI where they operated and basically put my jaw back together, metal plates all down at the bottom. And for quite a long time after that I was having restoration work because not only did I break my jaw, but my teeth smashed together.  So my teeth were in a really bad way.  I had a couple of years of root canal work, caps.  I had all my wisdom teeth taken out, and all the way through that process they (doctors) were talking about about having braces fitted because my teeth were knocked about a lot. They all said it was my decision but they all said that there would be good results from having braces. So I decided to have the braces."

On improvements and complications after treatment

"Yeah everything!  Appearance.  Comfort.  I'm not in any pain any longer.  I can eat okay. When I broke my jaw in 2009, the swelling was kind of pretty horrific after the operation and this left side was probably not as swollen as the right side.  The right side swelled right out and that's what I was concerned about.  Then went back down to normal but the left side has always been quite hard and that's never gone away.   It doesn't cause me any discomfort but it's something that will always be there since the first operation

I spoke to the surgeon about it and he said there were more complications of trying to put it right than there were leaving it as it was and I respected his opinions because I had met him quite a few times and all I'd heard was really positive feedback about him.  

It doesn't bother me now, I'm not in any pain.  The only thing now is that I've still got some numbness in my lower lip and that would have been a result of the operation in September 2014.  

I am still aware of it now but it doesn't bother me at all, it doesn't affect me on a daily basis."

 

Kayleigh,18 years old - Currently Mid treatment 

On how she feels about the appearence of her teeth so far

"I was really sensitive about my teeth and my mum says now I am so much smilier because of my teeth.  Before I wouldn't ever smile with my teeth so in pictures and that, it would probably be the worst picture ever but it was just because I wouldn't smile."