Chin Advancement

Q: Dr. Eppley, I am interested in chin advancement surgery for my obstructive sleep apnea. (OSA) Let me explain that I had an extremely underdeveloped chin and I had a chin implant out in over twenty years ago. The OSA has always been present and I snore really loud. I have made a few attempts to have this corrected but I’m a mouth breather. I have a CPAP machine but it really puts a lot of pressure on the chin implant and it hurts me to wear that awful mask. I have had the machine for over five years. I’m ready for a surgical solution. Ive spoken to my sleep doctor but she is not qualified to answer the surgical question.

A: Thank you for your clarification on your OSA history. With an extremely short chin it is very likely that mandibular advancement would be the most beneficial approach or even bimaxillary advancement surgery.. But doing so would require pre surgical orthodontics and that is often not feasible or very desirable when one is older. The other option, albeit less effective, is a sliding genioplasty chin advancement. This can  help to bring the tongue somewhat forward…although not as much as a total lower jaw advancement.

I aska about whom recommended surgery for your OSA because that may have meant that the sleep doctors had exhausted all they could do and detected a jaw bone deficiency in you.

I would need to see pictures of your face and your current bite to see whether these surgical options may be beneficial for you.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana