Orthognathic Jaw Surgery Cost

What is the cost of reconstructive jaw surgery and when does it make sense to resort to such surgery?

Orthognathic surgery is a restorative jaw surgery that aligns or realigns your jaw, and remedies related skeletal deformities that a patient might require. At minimum, orthognathic surgery cost includes cosmetic surgeon charges, health center charges, orthodontics charges, anesthesia charges and pain medications. However, last expenses might depend on a number of conditions distinct to the person.

What Is Orthognathic Jaw Surgery?

This type of surgery, done by an oral and maxillofacial surgeon (OMS) in a healthcare facility setting which involves correcting and realigning the jaws using surgical plates or design templates, screws and wires.

Why would you purchase this treatment? The main purpose is to remedy a severe malocclusion (improper bite) that might be triggering practical issues in day-to-day habits, such as speech, chewing food or even sleep apnea. You may likewise experience headaches, joint pain or periodontal (gum) pain. Inning accordance with the American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons (AAOMS), the list below conditions might likewise trigger a need for orthognathic surgery:

• Birth defects
• Chronic jaw or jaw joint (TMJ) pain
• Involuntary mouth breathing
• Inability of your lips to come together without straining
• Injury or injury to the jaw or face
• Open bite (space in between the upper and lower teeth when your mouth is closed).
• Extending jaw.
• Declining lower jaw and chin.
• Growth or pathology affecting the jaw.

See also: Sinus Lift Surgery

Lifestyle Before Orthognathic Surgery

With age, having a bite problem, there is a growing awareness that you will have to resort to reconstructive jaw surgery and when it makes sense to resort to such surgery. And it is logical that the cost of this surgery becomes a subject of interest for potential patients.

Although children may have particular birth conditions or orthodontic problems ultimately needing jaw surgery, it is usually appropriate only after he stops growing. That age is typically around 13 to 15 for girls and 16 to 18 for boys.

Nonetheless, early detection and treatment of a child’s orthodontic problems can often avoid the need for surgery completely.

Typically, you wear braces for 9 to 18 months before the surgery. After your jaw recuperates from the surgery, your orthodontist ends up aligning your teeth and eventually eliminates the braces. The whole orthodontic procedure, consisting of surgery, might take one to 3 years.

Do you know about Gingival Flap Surgery?

Is Jaw Surgery Dangerous?

The surgery usually takes one to 3 hours, and requires basic anesthesia, which has the tendency to carry the risks of any significant treatment. These dangers include pain, swelling, bleeding, infection and unfavorable response to anesthesia.

More involved procedures can in theory harm neighboring bone or gums, and the anesthetic itself might cause numbness in comparable areas. You typically stay in the medical facility for one to two days, and have a six-week at-home recovery time.

Be sure to follow your doctor’s directions for home-based oral care, which, for children, usually consists of brushing after every meal using a small, gentle kids’ toothbrush, toothbrushes and tooth brushes for older children or tweens.

Read also about Cleft Palate Repair Surgery

How Much Does Orthognathic Surgery Cost in 2024

Orthognathic surgery cost in the United States can vary from about $20,000 to well over $40,000. Beyond orthodontics, other elements that can sway the cost include intensity of the jaw misalignment and what type of surgery is needed. Your location, the health center treating you and complications during care can all make a distinction too.

In basic, corrective jaw surgery is thought about a medical procedure, not a cosmetic procedure, and is required to prevent more pricey medical and dental issues later on in life.

See also: Gum Disease Surgery Types and Cost

Jaw Surgery Cost in Details

Jaw surgery is done to fix a substantial overbite or under bite. Jaw surgical treatments vary in price from $5000-$80,000. The cost of jaw surgery is affected by many factors; place, what healthcare facility the surgery is performed in, the severity of the jaw misalignment, complications, orthodontic costs, if the surgery is for medical or cosmetic factors. Jaw surgery cost includes surgeon fees, medical facility costs, orthodontics charges, anesthesia costs and pain medications. The cost of jaw surgery can be considerably increased if any complications take place during surgery. Maxillofacial jaw surgery costs can be decreased by contacting an oral and maxillofacial surgical residency program; oral and maxillofacial surgical residency programs often offer discount jaw surgeries.

Orthodontic fees range from $2000-$20,000, depending on whether the patient needs braces or not. Two years of braces costs around $5000, some patients are needed to wear braces a year before and a year after surgery. Anesthesia costs vary in price from $1000-$2000. The cost of the jaw surgery procedure is around $5000-$20,000. For jaw surgery that is being done for medical factors, federal government subsidies may be available.

Area is a huge element when assessing jaw surgery cost. Normally, jaw surgeries are more costly in the United States than anywhere else worldwide. The average cost of jaw surgery in Europe and Canada is $8000-$12,000. The average cost of jaw surgery in lots of Asian countries is $3000-$4000. Within the United States, jaw surgery cost varies per state. In larger cities and states with a high cost of living jaw surgery costs hundreds or even countless dollars more than in states with a lower cost of living.

Corrective Jaw Surgery Cost
Jaw correction surgery cost varieties from $5000-$80,000.  Without insurance, average cost is around $20,000. Jaw correction surgery costs include hospital costs, surgeon charges, anesthesia costs, orthodontics charges and the cost of medication. To help make the high cost of jaw correction surgery affordable numerous orthodontic centers and healthcare facilities provide financing.

Reconstructive Jaw Surgery Cost
Typical expenses are around $10,000-$20,000. Nevertheless, jaw reconstruction surgery expenses can be as high as $80,000. Surgery expenses differ greatly per place and doctor. Surgery costs also vary depending on the amount of work that has to be done. Some people need to wear braces prior to and/or after surgery; the cost of braces will add an additional $5000-$10,000 or more to the total cost of jaw surgery.

Upper Jaw Surgery Cost
Upper jaw surgery is often done to repair a severe overbite. Upper jaw surgeries vary in price from $3000-$40,000. The typical uninsured upper jaw surgery patient invests about $5000-$10,000 on the procedure. Upper jaw surgery cost differs depending upon place, doctor and the hospital or clinic the surgery is performed in. Hospitals and centers in large cities tend to cost considerably more than hospitals and clinics in small towns. Upper jaw surgery provided for cosmetic factors will have to be paid for by the patient.

Lower Jaw Surgery Cost
Lower jaw surgery is typically done to fix a severe under bite. Lower jaw surgeries vary in price from $5000-$40,000. However, the typical uninsured lower jaw surgery patient pays about $8000-$15,000 on the procedure. Surgery expenses differ greatly depending on place; in the United States lower jaw surgery cost can vary by countless dollars per state and doctor.

Jaw Alignment Surgery Cost
Jaw misalignment can cause difficulties in chewing, breathing, speaking and swallowing. It can likewise cause small facial disfigurement. Jaw alignment surgery costs $3000-$80,000, depending upon area and the doctor. Average costs are around $10,000-$20,000 without insurance coverage. Those who can not afford jaw positioning surgery costs and are getting the surgery provided for medical reasons can get a subsidy from the federal government.

Jaw Reduction Surgery Cost
Jaw reduction surgery is often done by women who have a really manly square jaw. Jaw decrease surgery costs $4000-$10,000. Surgery expenses differ per place, the doctor and if there are any complications. Jaw decrease surgery expenses cover things like medical facility costs, anesthesia, surgeon charges, the cost of medication and other comparable expenses.  The cost of jaw decrease surgery is cheaper outside of the United States. Typical jaw reduction surgery expenses in Thailand are around $3000 and typical expenses in Korea are around $3500.

Questions & Answers

jenny: My mom wants me to have my bite corrected because my lower jaw is sticking out a little forward. But I’m not sure if I will feel comfortable after the surgery? After all, it’s not a cheap procedure and I don’t want to be disappointed…

Dr.Lee: The main purpose of orthodontic surgery is to correct the bite. In simpler cases, correction with braces is sufficient, but there are certain pathologies of the jaw that cannot be corrected without surgery. Operations in the field of orthodontics belong to the field of maxillofacial plastic surgery. Through diagnostic procedures and manipulations a computer simulation of the maxillofacial area, a panoramic image and axiography are created. The results of these examinations give the big picture and make the outcome of orthognathic surgery predictable. Indications for orthognathic surgery:

• Facial asymmetry caused by improper occlusion (closing of the jaws).
• Severe development of the lower or upper jaw.
• Underdevelopment of the jaws.

Bill Morris: Could you describe step by step how the operation on the jaw goes? I think it would help me decide sooner to have the procedure.

Dr.Lee: Yes, Bill, of course I can give you information on the standard procedure and the steps it involves.

Because this surgery is quite difficult, several doctors must be present at the same time: the surgeon, the anesthesiologist and, of course, the orthodontist.

The sequence of actions when treating an adult patient:

• It is important to understand that the correction in this way should be carried out only to persons over 18 years of age. Otherwise, the risk of relapse is quite high.
• Before the surgery, a thorough preparation should be performed, including this may be the alignment of the row with the help of braces, professional cleaning of stone and plaque.
• Diagnosis includes examination of soft and hard tissues. It is this point of examination allows the most accurate prediction of the final result of all manipulations.
• All actions are performed only under general anesthesia, as the operation takes several hours.
• Incisions are made inside the oral cavity, so there are no visible marks on the face.

Stages of treatment

Any surgery will consist of several stages:

Preoperative orthodontic preparation. This usually involves the extraction of retained wisdom teeth, healing of caries, and removal of inflammation.

At the stage of diagnosis, the doctor prescribes a telero-entgenogram, orthopantomogram and three-dimensional models of the patient’s jaw.

Next, the patient consults with an anesthesiologist, and the operation begins.

Surgery can also be of several types:

• mandibular osteotomy. Two types of pathology are most common in dental practice: a strong protrusion forward of the lower jaw, as well as a lack of jaw development due to certain factors. To correct this, a planar osteotomy can be prescribed. This procedure is one of the safest and easiest.
• Upper jaw osteotomy. Most often appointed when the jaws are positioned to the back. In this case, the operation involves the palatal segment, which is moved by making several incisions. After relocation, the jaw is fixed in the desired position.
• Genioplasty. In this case, the correction of the chin is performed, the patient’s appearance is improved, and symmetry appears on his face. If required, genioplasty is performed at the same time as plastic correction of the shape of the nose and cheekbones. After the surgery, the doctor places a tight splint on the jaw for fixation (bandage). During recovery, the patient may experience swelling of the face, sensitivity defects in certain areas, and problems with facial expressions.

All surgeries are performed under anesthesia only, and the patient will need to stay in the hospital for 2-3 days.

Helen: Could you please tell me what the cost of correcting a distal bite is? (Surgically. Taking into account all the nuances of consumables)

Dr.Lee: I can give approximate reconstructive jaw surgery cost (I must admit that we already cited them in the article.) In general, the entire set of preparatory procedures, the jaw surgery itself, consumables for surgery costs US citizens from $18k to $45k. There are several reasons for the variation in prices: clinic rates, complexity of the surgery, associated pathologies, etc.