Health-related quality of life following orthognathic surgery

A randomized controlled trial was conducted to compare the effects of rigid and wire fixation on health-related quality of life following surgical mandibular advancement in patients with Class II malocclusions. Sixty-four patients randomly selected to receive rigid fixation with bicortical position screws were compared with 63 patients randomly selected to receive nonrigid fixation with inferior border wires. Quality of life was measured using the Sickness Impact Profile, a generic measure of health-related quality of life, and the Oral Health Status Questionnaire, a specific measure of oral health and function designed for use with orthognathic surgery patients. Patients were evaluated prior to application of orthodontic appliances, approximately 2 weeks before surgery, and 1 week, 8 weeks, 6 months, 1 year, and 2 years following surgery. Neither instrument revealed a statistically significant difference in quality of life between wire and rigid fixation at any time period. The health-related disability associated with Class II malocclusion is modest compared to many other medical conditions. Nonetheless, orthognathic surgery patients exhibit progressive and statistically significant improvement in health-related quality of life across a wide variety of functional domains, regardless of the fixation method used.