Hello all,

I hope I can offer some advice to the OP. With today's advancement in surgical and reconstructive techniques, the entire jaw or part of the jaw can be reconstructed that will restore functions that were lost before. However, it should be noted that these types of surgeries are not for everyone. A surgeon must take into account the patient's overall systemic health and the prognosis of the case. Sometimes the risks or the end results may be too limited to justify for the commitment of the surgery. If the reconstruction is not recommended, be sure to find out the reasons. Is it because your medical center does not have the personel to do the surgery and specialists to restore your dentition? Or is it because of your systemic condition considerations that put you as a poor candidate for surgery? Or perhaps there are other options that may be better than reconstruction of your jaw? It is always wise to seek second or third opinion regarding your situation.

Let's assume that surgical reconstruction of the lower jaw is not possible, then what is next? When a jaw is resected, you will loose the normal relationship of the upper jaw to the lower jaw. That is the resected side tends to rotate out of the position due to the lack of equal muscle pull. However, there are oral prostheses that can restore occlusion (teeth coming together) and allow you to masticate the food properly. From what I read of your post, you do not have problem swallowing nor having part of your tongue removed so I would say that the prognosis of having an appliance that works for you is good. However, these types of appliances are best left for prosthodontists or maxillofacial prosthodontists. Another point to consider is to monitor your ability to open your mouth. If you notice a decrease in your mouth opening, contact your dentist or physician and inquire about a trimus appliance at once. Untreated trimus will cause a huge complication for prosthesis construction. What is the world's simplest trismus appliance? A: Taped together tounge blades.

It should be noted that these appliances will not look normal and they will not allow you to eat all kinds of foods like before. However, they will provide adequate teeth contacts during function. DP