Questions after "Orthognathic Surgery" – Q & A



1. My nose is bleeding suddenly after discharging, is it normal?
- It is normal that your nose bleeds. This bleeding may last for 1-2 weeks after surgery and is made while the surgery is conducted. It is the stagnated blood in the bone next to your nose and it will come out of your nose as swellings subdue around the nose. Please do not blow or sniff your nose and just wipe off the blood.

* If your nose does not stop bleeding or the wound inside of your mouth bleeds, please press down the bleeding area gently. If it is still bleeding, visit our hospital or any emergency centers for treatments.

2. My teeth do not fit into the wafer
- You may feel like your teeth are not fitting into the wafer because your sense of teeth has changed after surgery. However, if you really think they are not fitting into the wafer, you need to visit us to change the location of the rubber bands. If this situation continues, there may be a problem of occlusion or the period of bracing might get longer. However, estrange of wafer location for 1-2 days is not a big problem so you do not need to hasten or be flustered.

3. It has been a month since the surgery but one side of my chin is still painful and swollen after eating hard food.
- This is a temporary symptom caused from putting too much strength to your chin muscles. However, there may be a problem on the bones or fixing equipment, so we recommend you to visit the hospital and have tests such as radioactive examination to check for any problems.

*A month after surgery, bones are in the progress of returning to its original density but it is not strong enough to reach its original strength. (It takes more than 3 months to get the normal bone strength after surgery) You need to be careful to eat only soft food until your bone is completely recovered.

4. When can I start taking a shower/ going to sauna?
- You can take a shower a day after the surgery as long as the bandages are attached firmly and it is protecting your wounds well. You can go to sauna after removing all the stitches (about a month after surgery).

* It is not good to be exposed by heat in sauna for a long time.

5. When can I get on the flight after leaving the hospital?
- After discharging, getting on the flight or wobbly bus does not cause any problems. However, it is better to postpone your overseas travelling schedules to at least 1-2 month of your surgery.

*For a few days after your surgery, because your eustachian tube is blocked, you might feel pains in your ears during flights.

6. When can I start doing light exercises?
- From a month after the surgery, you can start doing light exercises that does not require body contacts (light jogging, swimming, golfing, hiking and etc). However, wait for at least three month after your surgery to start doing hard exercises such as soccer and basketball.

* It is not good if you give severe concussion to your surgical areas until your bones are agglutinated. It will take about three months at least for your bone to have its original density.

7. I have a sore and hoarse throat after surgery.
- Your throat may be hurt temporarily because of the anesthetic tube that had been put into your throat during the surgery. If you have infections on your throat or catch a cold, this pain may last for 2-3 months. At ID, we offer a joint treatment with ENT doctors so we will do checkups for you when you come visit us.

8. My lower lip feels tingly.
- During the lower jaw surgery, your senses around the jaw areas may be deprived, but it does not mean that your nerves are damaged. Thus your senses may be recovered within 1-2 weeks after surgery generally. However, recovery period may vary depending on each patient’s condition. For some patients, it could take 3 months to 1 year to get their senses back but no matter of the length, the nerve symptoms will be recovered so you don’t need to feel anxious about it.

9. Why do my muscles or teeth feel tight after surgery?
- After surgery, your tensed muscles may cause small cramps and because your face and muscles are swollen, it can also cause stretchy feelings. Moreover, you might feel strange because of new teeth occlusion but this symptom will get better as your swelling subdues.

10. Why do I feel like my chin is sticking out after removing the wafer?
- It is not your actual chin that is sticking out but the muscles of your chin. This is caused from your previous habit when you had a protruding chin; just making you feel like your chin is moved forward. If your bite is correct, your chin does not stick out.

11. Why does my chin make a sound when I open the mouth?
- Your temporomandibular joints require time to be settled and relocated in its new position after the surgery. Therefore your jaw could make a sound when you open your mouth until it is set, but it is normal.

12. It has been a while since I got the surgery but my ears are still deafened.
- You could feel deafened because of oedema in your Eustachian tube, but it subdues in 1-2 weeks. If this symptom is continued for a long time, you might be having an inflammation in the middle ear. In this case, please contact us or see an ENT doctor for checkup.

13. Will my skin be saggy after surgery?
- Not the entire skin, but it could be affected by the elasticity of your skin. Surgeries that require whole face transition, such as bimaxillary operations have tendency to result with less saggy skin, as the entire face skin relocates lastly. It will take about 3-6 months for the skin to be relocated and settled.

14. Will I have pronunciation problems after surgery?
- After surgery, due to the imperfection of occlusion, your pronunciation may sound inaccurate initially. But with your orthodontic in progress and as time goes by, this symptom will be improved.

15. I can’t close my mouth properly; I need force to close.
- Because your lips swell and strength in your muscles decrease after surgery, your lower lip drops down and therefore it is hard to close your mouth naturally. Over 3-4 months of time, your mouth will be recovered with a natural shape, so you don’t need to worry about this symptom.

16. I have dizziness when I wake up in the morning.
- This symptom is called orthostatic hypotension and is different to anemia. However, if you have anemia it could worsen your condition so please check your anemia level and take iron if needed.




Unbelievable Makeovers ↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓↓
http://eng.idhospital.com/media/letmiin_best.html