Jaw wiring

Definition

Jaw wiring, also known as maxillomandibular fixation, is a surgical procedure where metal pins and wires are anchored into the jaw bones and surrounding tissues to keep the jaw from moving.

Description

Jaw wiring surgery can be performed by an oral or maxillofacial surgeon (a specially trained dentist), or by an otolaryngologist (a doctor specializing in surgeries of the head and neck). The procedure may be done in a medical or dental office if the office is staffed and equipped to handle this type of surgery. More often, this surgery is performed in a hospital or medical center surgical area. If jaw wiring is required due to an injury, the surgeon may set the fracture immediately before swelling sets in. It is also possible to wait (up to several weeks) until the swelling goes down and some of the soft tissue injuries have healed, prior to wiring the jaw fracture.

The surgeon realigns the fractured bones. Every effort is made to restore the shape and appearance of the original jaw line. If any teeth were damaged, repair or replacement may be done at the same time. Small incisions may be made through the skin and surrounding tissue so the pins and wires can be set into the jawbone to hold the fracture together. To prevent the lower jaw from moving during healing, pins and wires may be inserted into the top jaw, as well. The upper and lower jaws are then wired together in order to stabilize the fracture.

As with other types of bone fractures, the jaw may take several weeks to heal. Another type of jaw immobilization that has been developed more recently, rigid fixation uses small metal plates and screws rather than pins and wires to secure the jaw bones. The main benefit of this technique is that the jaws do not have to be wired shut, allowing the patient to return to a more normal lifestyle sooner.

— Altha Roberts Edgren

An extreme method of controlling the food consumption of obese compulsive eaters. Apparently, despite being prevented from chewing by having their jaws wired together, some patients still manage to consume their favourite foods by liquidizing them and drinking them through a straw. Jaw wiring is usually successful only when used in combination with expert counselling and the patient is given sound nutritional advice following removal of the wires.

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The act of wiring a jaw keeps it closed for some amount of time. Originally this was as the mandibular equivalent of a cast, to fix the jaw in place while a fracture healed, but now jaws are sometimes wired for weight-loss purposes, preventing the ingestion of solid food.

Jaw wiring ^[1] is a fixed intra-oral, bio-mechanical device and method for treating and controlling compulsive overeating and obesity. The device is composed of orthodontic brackets attached to the teeth, and pliable wire wrapped either around or through the brackets. The brackets are optimally positioned with respect to the anterior‑posterior position of the lower jaw. The wiring is configured to suspend the patient’s lower jaw in a semi-closed, partially movable resting position which permits a moderate amount of physiologic jaw movement and relatively clear speech, while inhibiting the ingestion of solid foods. On September 22, 2006, Dr. Ted Rothstein filed an application for a Utility patent with the USPTO.

References

1. ^ Orthodontic jaw wiring

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