2 Tips To Improve Your Teen's Recovery From Corrective Jaw Surgery For A Malocclusion

It can be a bit easier to realign crooked teeth when smiling. However, if your teeth feel and appear misaligned when your mouth is closed, then you most likely have a malocclusion. When detected in teens, corrective jaw surgery is often recommended to correct the problem. The procedure involves wearing braces beforehand and undergoing an invasive procedure to help realign the jaw line. After the procedure is complete, your teen may not experience much discomfort. The recovery process takes months and can make it difficult to perform everyday activities very well. Luckily, there are a few tips that you can use to make the recovery on your teen a lot easier.

Keep Track of What They Eat

Diet is a huge factor when it comes to recovering from any kind of oral procedure. It is even more important after a corrective jaw operation. Your doctor will stick your child with an all fluid diet for the first week or so. This may feel limiting to your teen if they are only used to solid foods. Therefore, they may just stick to broths and juices. However, it is important to monitor your teen's diet and ensure that they get all of the necessary nutrients. This can be done by creating smoothies that are considered to be meal replacements. These smoothies usually have hundreds of calories and are packed with vegetables and fruits. If you go this route, it is important to make sure that the smoothies are blended thoroughly.

Encourage them not to Slack on Their Oral Care

Oral care is another big factor that affects recovery. Bacteria buildup and infections are common after oral procedures because the area is much more difficult to clean. Therefore, you should encourage them to clean their mouth after every meal. This will cut down on any potential buildup and will remove contaminants that are leftover. In addition, instruct your teen to use a bacteria fighting mouthwash. This will cleanse that are hard to reach immediately after the surgery. The rinse should be moved around by tilting the head from side to side. This will prevent your teen from having to move their mouth muscles and disrupt the surgical wounds that are still healing.

As a parent, you can improve your teen's recovery from corrective jaw surgery tremendously. It is important to know what to do. Use this as a guide or visit your dentist office for more information.