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Physical Therapy for Smile Improvement After Orthognathic Surgery
Sung Ok Hong1, Seung-Hak Baek, Jin-Young Choi
1*Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School of Dentistry †Department of Dentristry, Catholic Kwandong University International St Mary's Hospital ‡Department of Orthodontics §Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, School of Dentistry, Dental Research Institute, Seoul National University, Chongno-Gu, Seoul, South Korea.
Physical therapy for smile improvement enhances smile aesthetics post-orthognathic surgery. This targeted training positively impacts smile height, lip curvature, and tooth visibility, improving overall facial harmony.
Area of Science:
- Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
- Plastic Surgery
- Physical Therapy
Background:
- Orthognathic surgery, including LeFort I osteotomy and bilateral sagittal split ramus osteotomy (BSSRO), aims to correct skeletal discrepancies.
- Post-surgical smile aesthetics are crucial for patient satisfaction and quality of life.
- Limited research exists on targeted interventions to improve smile characteristics after orthognathic procedures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a physical therapy program on smile esthetics-related properties following orthognathic surgery.
- To assess changes in smile height, upper lip curvature, smile arc, maxillary posterior tooth visibility, and buccal corridor ratio.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 44 adult patients (13 males, 31 females) underwent orthognathic surgery (LeFort I osteotomy and BSSRO).
- Patients participated in a 3-month smile training program starting one month post-surgery, guided by educational video content.
- Frontal posed smile photographs were captured before (T1) and after (T2) the training period for quantitative analysis.
Main Results:
- Significant improvements were observed in smile height (32% to 50%), upward upper lip curvature (52% to 73%), and visibility of maxillary posterior teeth (48% to 59%) (P<0.05).
- A significant reduction in the buccal corridor ratio was noted (14% to 11%) (P<0.05).
- While not statistically significant, a trend towards a more parallel smile arc was observed (77% to 82%).
Conclusions:
- This smile training intervention appears to enhance smile esthetics-related properties in patients recovering from orthognathic surgery.
- The findings suggest that physical therapy can be a valuable adjunct in post-orthognathic surgical care.
- Further long-term studies with control groups are recommended to validate these preliminary results.
