Hello. I’d like to share my honest experience of double jaw surgery at The Face Dental in Seoul.

I’m writing this at about 2.5 months post-op, and I want to be transparent: at this stage, this review is more negative than positive — though I’m aware I may feel differently once the swelling is fully gone.

Consultation & procedure
I consulted Dr Lee for a protruding mouth (bimaxillary protrusion), a weak chin, a long face and a gummy smile.

I got a Le Fort I osteotomy, BSSRO and genioplasty . Two weeks before surgery the clinic did X-rays, blood tests and impressions for the surgical wafer. I had regular follow-up appointments throughout, which I appreciated.

Initial consultation :

Dr Lee is fluent in English. This was great, so i could be sure that he understood what i say. Honestly, I wish I had received more information during the initial consultations. Even though i asked many questions, I feel they lacked detail about what to expect and the side effects . I’d advise future patients to ask a lot of questions beforehand, they need to pay a lot of attention on the recovery process.

Recovery — the first month (this was very hard)
The early recovery was difficult. For the first weeks I could only drink through a syringe. Around 3 weeks I was allowed soft foods but still couldn’t chew; only around 1 month, after the surgeon’s approval, could I eat slightly more solid (but not hard) foods.

The swelling went down very slowly for me. There was a big improvement in the second week, then it slowed down — so much that at 1 month I was still almost as swollen as at week 3. My friends were shocked at how swollen my face still was at one month. I got very discouraged. (Note for future patients: swelling timelines vary a lot — mine was slow, and that was hard mentally especially when i saw on reddit all thèses cases of fast recoveryk.) I also had altered nerve sensation, which I understand is normal and still recovering.

From 1 month to now (2.5 months)
I returned in my country around the 1-month mark. Between one month and now, the swelling went down noticeably, mostly between weeks 6 and 8. Since then I haven’t seen much further improvement — though this may just mean I deswell more slowly than others.

My concerns

• My bite. My teeth were already aligned before surgery, and I was told I would not need orthodontics because my occlusion and alignment would be preserved. But after surgery my bite changed - my teeth no longer meet the way they did — and it now looks like I will need orthodontic treatment after all because there are huge gaps between My upper teeth and lower teeth. This is what I’m most disappointed about after the my nose widening. This will cost me a lot of money.

• My nose. This is my hardest point by far. I haven’t seen the width improve, and I’m honestly afraid the widening may be significant and permanent, despite the alar cinch. I raised this exact worry repeatedly at both pre-op consultations and was reassured there was nothing to fear and that it would return to normal. Not seeing change yet has been very hard.
• My gummy smile. One of my main concerns going in — at this stage it still looks quite apparent to me. It’s slighlty better than before but the gummy smile is still there and it’s still big
• My upper lip. Still protruded, though less than in the first weeks. Hoping this is still swelling (it wasn’t protruded pre op)
• My submental area and jawline. I still find it heavy, and my face overall still looks quite round to me, which is discouraging — from what I’ve seen online, people seem to look much closer to their final result by this point, and I don’t feel I do. That said, my double chin has improved between one month and now.

Positives
My profile. My bimaxillary protrusion has been corrected and my chin is more projected. That part, I’m genuinely happy with.

Overall — my honest feeling right now
Aside from the profile improvement, at this stage I somewhat regret going through with this surgery, mainly because of the nose that widened significantly. I’m holding on to the hope that I’m still far from the final result and that things will improve — the surgeon told me to wait until 3 months before judging, so I’m waiting. I guess face is still swollen and not settled, so this is not a final verdict, and I’ll update this review as I heal.

This is my personal experience — everyone is different, and so is their recovery.

Thank you.