A patient with severe maxillary gingival exposure treated with combined compression osteogenesis of the anterior alveolar bone and conventional Le Fort I osteotomy.
Excessive gingival exposure at the maxillary anterior region during not only smiling (a gummy face) but also at rest creates both functional and aesthetic problems for patients. We herein introduce a unique treatment procedure for mandibular retrognathia with a gummy face. This procedure combines conventional Le Fort I osteotomy and following corticotomy at the anterior region of the maxilla. Subsequently, the anterior segment is continuously compressed (compression osteogenesis) in a posterior-superior direction until it reaches an ideal position. This procedure appears to safely and adequately resolve both the aesthetic and functional complaints associated with patients with a gummy face.
From the *Department of Regenerative Oral Surgery, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki; †Division of Dentistry and Oral Surgery, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui; and ‡Department of Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics, Nagasaki University Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Nagasaki, Japan.
Seigo
S
Ohba
Haruka
H
Kohara
Takako
T
Kawasaki
Yuji
Y
Fujimura
Noriaki
N
Yoshida
Izumi
I
Asahina
D000293:Adolescent; D000539:Alveolar Process / Q000601:surgery*; D002508:Cephalometry; D004954:Esthetics; D005260:Female; D005881:Gingiva / Q000601:surgery*; D006801:Humans; D063175:Mandibular Reconstruction / Q000379:methods*; D008437:Maxilla / Q000601:surgery*; D009971:Orthodontics, Corrective / Q000379:methods*; D010012:Osteogenesis; D010027:Osteotomy / Q000379:methods; D019340:Osteotomy, Le Fort / Q000379:methods*; D011862:Radiography, Panoramic; D063173:Retrognathia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D012904:Smiling / Q000502:physiology