So it's fairly simple to cut right through the mess / And to stop the muscle that makes us confess.

J is for Jawbone, indeed. Brief recap: In June of this year, I underwent lower jaw surgery (called a bilateral sagittal split osteotomy). Unfortunately, the surgery was unsuccessful, and my surgeon told us that I wasn't a good candidate for further attempts. Read previous posts and see my cool bionic skull here.

So I met with a different specialist last month (Dr. P at Kaiser Oakland) to find out about alternate therapies. However, to our surprise, he seems to think that if he performed the same surgery (BSSO, like Dr. T at Kaiser Santa Clara attempted), it would be successful. I'm cautiously optimistic, and the procedure is scheduled for 16 Jan 2009. He seems very confident, but I do want to make sure that he works closely with my previous surgeon to ensure success (with as little nerve damage as possible), since my surgical team ran into trouble before.

Regarding recovery, he does things a little differently. This time, I'll have a splint between my teeth and I'll be wired shut, but only for ten days. All incisions will be intraoral, which is nice. And there will be metal plates to anchor the bone, instead of just screws. I can't say that I'm looking forward to another surgery, but if when it succeeds, I'll feel that all the effort and funds we've invested haven't been wasted. I did heal very rapidly last time, and didn't really have any adverse side effects, so that bodes well.




And this seems to be floating about again (last seen at la_veuve_chibi): ( Nearest Book Meme )

Twitterings of the Day

• 09:38 Last night, Ethiopian food on Haight w/ @shoutingboy and @tutordennis, followed by a couple of chapters of Watership Down and snugs. *glee* #
• 10:20 Elephants, like humans, apes and dolphins, recognize self in mirror: tinyurl.com/mirrorelephant (thanks, @baerana!) #
• 10:26 Hair and Balanced TV Filter detects talking head pundits or newscasters, then draws moustaches on their faces: tinyurl.com/mustachetv #
• 11:16 Top 5 Mad Scientists of All Time Diagnosed on a Sci-Fi Couch (Muwahahahaha!): www.popularmechanics.com/science/research/4278842.html #
• 12:48 @baerana: BTW, I agree that PETA is an organization that does more harm for animals than good, and makes other animal welfare orgs look bad. #
• 15:53 Today is full of farewells. #
• 18:37 The same-sex union question just came up in the VP debate: www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/09/18/politics/2008debates/main4457570.shtml #
• 19:03 @katealaurel: Oimoi! I've seen some pretty sizable tmeses in my time. Are you reading Homer? #
• 19:38 Thank goodness we've got a "team of mavericks" (um?) attending soccer games on "Main St" and giving us "Joe Six-pack" folks "straight talk." #
• 20:14 Did Palin seriously use the "some of my best friends" are pro-gay marriage line with a straight face? Heh. #

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