Maxillofacial surgery

Maxillofacial surgery is like fixing a puzzle.

You know how you like to play with puzzles and try to fit all the pieces together? Well, sometimes our faces and jaws don't fit perfectly together like they should. This can happen because of an accident or something we were born with.

When someone needs maxillofacial surgery, a special doctor called a maxillofacial surgeon helps fix their face and jaw pieces so they fit together better.

The surgeon might move a big piece of the jaw or the whole face to make it fit better with the other pieces. They might use special tools to do this, like small screws, plates or rubber bands. Sometimes, they may need to remove a small piece of bone, too.

Maxillofacial surgery can help fix lots of problems, like when you have trouble eating, speaking or even breathing because your jaws or face aren’t working right.

After the surgery, you might need to wear a special brace or bandage to help everything stay in place and heal properly. You might also need to eat soft foods for a little while or use special straws to drink.

But eventually, your face and jaw will be all fixed up, and you'll be able to be back to your normal life without any problems.