What Uncomfortable Symptoms Can Occur After Square Jaw Surgery?

Hello, I’m Director Jo Hyun-woo of Ipcheok Plastic Surgery.

In my previous column, I talked about the symptoms that can occur after cheekbone surgery.

Today, I’ll explain the uncomfortable symptoms that may appear after square jaw surgery.

My chin feels strange

The most common discomfort patients report after square jaw surgery is numbness in the front chin area.

Since the incision is not actually made in the front chin area, many patients worry that a nerve has been damaged if they experience sensory changes there.

When performing square jaw surgery, a long curved resection must be made down to the inferior alveolar nerve area, so the nerve becomes exposed.

If the inferior alveolar nerve is exposed, the sensory nerve that extends to the front chin may temporarily disappear.

This can happen even when the nerve has not been damaged at all, and for those who recover quickly, sensation may return within 1 to 2 weeks.

However, for those who recover a bit more slowly, it may take about 3 to 4 months, but it is a sensation that recovers 100%, so there is no need to worry.

Is this nerve damage to the teeth?

The second discomfort patients report is altered sensation in the teeth.

When an incision is made in the gum area, the sensation going toward the teeth may temporarily decrease.

There are very fine sensory nerves in our gum mucosa, and when that area is incised, sensation temporarily dulls; once it is sutured again, it can be understood as a symptom that gradually improves over time.

Is the jaw hard after square jaw surgery because of scar tissue?

Next, another common concern is hardness in the surgical area after square jaw surgery.

Since this is a surgery that involves peeling off the periosteum of the muscle, and because blood can collect in the early stage, hardness may be felt at first as part of the wound-healing process.

This is part of the recovery process, so you do not need to worry that inflammation has developed.

Square jaw surgery does not use fixation pins or other foreign bodies, so inflammation rarely occurs in this area. If you apply warm compresses well, it can help with faster recovery.

I can’t open my mouth after square jaw surgery

The fourth issue is that some people say they cannot open their mouth after square jaw surgery.

As I mentioned in a previous column, square jaw surgery and mouth opening are actually unrelated.

If patients become afraid to open their mouth and stop opening it, the jaw joint can become stiff.

After square jaw surgery, rather than being afraid to open your mouth, it would be better to open it comfortably.

My mouth became crooked after square jaw surgery

Lastly, some people say that their mouth shape has become strange after surgery.

This refers to cases where, after surgery, the left and right sides differ when lifting the corners of the mouth or making facial expressions, or the shape feels different from before. This is a temporary symptom caused by swelling, and it naturally recovers as the swelling goes down.

Another thing I want to mention is about the surgical wound after surgery.

Some patients notice that the wound area looks a little whitish after surgery and think it is inflammation.

However, inflammation at the surgical incision site cannot appear immediately after surgery.

In most cases, it may simply be food residue, or the mucosa at the incision site may look that way in the early stage, so if it is checked at the hospital, it should be clear that there is no major problem.

In fact, unlike cheekbone surgery, square jaw surgery does not usually involve many uncomfortable symptoms after the operation.

However, what I discussed today are symptoms that can appear during the recovery process after surgery.

Of course, you may feel worried and uneasy, but the symptoms above are things that can recover, so if you can relax a little, I believe you will be able to achieve good results.

It is a short piece, but I hope it was helpful.

Thank you.