My mother had surgery in February. She had part of her tongue, floor of mouth and mandible on the right side removed. In addition to all the other fun stuff that comes with this surgery her mouth is no longer in proper alignment because of the plate they used to replace her mandible I assume. She has a problem biting what's left of her tongue and the side of her mouth on the good side.She mentioned it to her doctor and he said that she could have surgery to adjust the metal plate so that her mouth is in better alignment. Of course after a month in the hospital already this year, she is not too enamored about the idea of more surgery and hospitalization. Is anyone out there familiar with this type of surgery and is it worth it? My mother is 79 and in pretty good shape, but I think she is beginning to get somewhat depressed and frustrated with her situation.

This sure doesn't seem like a satisfactory result after all she has been through. Before I step way out of line and suggest that things could have been done better (not knowing all the detail of the case), we should consider another possibility. After the removal of a portion of the mandible, and frequently some of the muscle attachments that control its movement, it can be difficult for patients to "relearn" to open and close properly, let alone chew anything with an appliance sitting on top of the mandibular ridge. Biting the cheek etc. would not be an unlikely situation to occur. But the person who will be able to give you the best possible answer to her situation, is not the surgeon who is further removed from the final prosthetic results, but a prosthodontist who has done some of these types of reconstructions. Before you assume that a surgery is needed to realign her mandible, this would be a valuable consultation to determine exactly what the problem is, and what needs to be done to correct it. Maxillofacial prosthodontists are the experts in this area.

Brian thanks for the response.The doctor who did the surgery is my mother's 2nd ENT. The ENT who performed my mother's neck resection sent her to another when the surgery required this time was so extensive. I think her doctor is one of the best around, but still a surgeon may see surgery as a solution to everything. I will take your advice and we will talk to a maxilofacial prosthodontist before pursuing more surgery. God knows she doesn't want to spend the remainder of her life in the hospital, and it certainly isn't a vanity issue. At this point with her diet being so restricted, and eating being such a chore, this just adds more to her already significant problems. Thanks again for your help and this forum.