Changes in occlusion after orthognathic surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis

This study aims to systematically review and identify the changes of occlusion in patients after orthognathic surgery.

The protocol was developed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P) and was registered to the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) under the registration number CRD42021253129. Studies included were Original articles only, Additionally, studies were included if the outcome of occlusal force was measured pre- and postoperatively and if occlusal forces resulted from a long follow-up of a minimum of 1 year following orthognathic surgery using adequate measurement tools. Non-English articles, case reports, case series, and non-original articles, including systematic reviews and literature reviews, were excluded.

The search strategy yielded a total of 978 articles. Of the 978 articles, 285 were duplicates. After reading the titles and abstracts, 649 articles were excluded, and full-text articles of the remaining 47 studies were reviewed independently by two authors for eligibility wherein 33 articles were excluded, because they did not meet the inclusion criteria. Finally, a total of 14 studies were processed for critical review.

The occlusal force increased after orthognathic surgery, although not to the level of the control group; however, the maximal bite force remained unchanged. Immediately after orthognathic surgery, chewing and swallowing forces increased. Significant reductions in the postoperative occlusal contact pressure areas was also observed.