Long-term assessment of psychologic outcomes of orthognathic surgery

Abstract

Purpose: This long-term study of post-orthognathic surgery patients aimed at assessing perceptions of problems with physical and psychologic functioning, self-concept, body image, and satisfaction with the surgical outcome based on subjective evaluations. In addition, the patient's perception of self-concept, body image, and function was compared with the perception of pretreatment patients and controls with no treatment need.

Patients and methods: One hundred seventeen patients who underwent orthognathic surgery 10 to 14 years earlier and participated in a psychologic study 10 years earlier received questionnaires that were composed of 4 instruments designed to assess these factors. A sample of 92 persons representing a population without treatment need and 39 patients requesting treatment for a malocclusion served as control groups.

Results: The findings of this study support the hypothesis that improvement in appearance brought about by orthognathic surgery is associated with improvement in psychosocial adjustment. Orthognathic surgery resulted in subjective estimation of function, appearance, health, and interpersonal relationships that was higher than that among pretreatment and no-treatment control groups. The level of body image and self-esteem approximated but did not reach that of a nonpatient population.

Conclusions: In view of the current psychologic and social environment, patients should be offered the appropriate treatment to correct a disfigurement if it is subjectively perceived by them as a handicap, in part to improve the psychologic outcome.