Successful rehabilitation after multiple severe complications following orthognathic surgery: a case report

Complications of orthognathic surgery are quite rare, but they cause suffering in affected individuals. The range of complications is broad and includes both hard and soft tissue.

We here present a case of a fully healthy woman without signs of impaired healing capacity. The patient underwent bimaxillary orthognathic surgery and experienced multiple complications both peri- and post-operatively. During the post operative period, the patient also suffered from soft tissue complications after an orthopaedic injury. Therefore, we referred the patient to her general practitioner for further medical investigation. We also present the result after restorative surgery and endodontic and prosthodontic treatment resulting in a successful rehabilitation.

This case report clearly shows the need for a good collaboration between different odontological and medical fields to achieve a good and predictable result. In situations where normal healing processes do not occur, in-depth analysis must be carried out.

Orthognathic surgery affects soft and hard tissue which can result in adverse healing and complications. It is of great importance to follow up performed surgery to see late complications. Be restrictive with early re-operations when there are signs of necrosis. Always use a multidisciplinary approach when handling complications after surgery.