When someone talks about a long face, they usually mean a face that expresses sadness, stress or exhaustion. But this is different from long face syndrome, a medical condition that deals with the actual structure of the skull.
Not all people with a long, narrow face have this condition. Long face syndrome affects your daily activities, such as eating, speaking and breathing.
Treatments are available and may include braces, dental work and surgery.
Long face syndrome is a condition that causes a long, narrow face that causes problems with daily activities. The condition is also known by its medical name, hyperfacial deviation.
When a person has long face syndrome, the lower third of their face, including their jaw and chin, is longer than usual. Often, people with long face syndrome have very visible upper gums when they smile. Some people also have dark or sagging skin under their eyes.
The physical signs of long face syndrome are generally minor and may go completely unnoticed. Many people with the condition may not know they have it.
However, untreated long face syndrome can cause problems because the lower third of the face is pulled away from the rest of the face. This affects the way people breathe, eat and talk. This can lead to complications such as:
Because the physical signs are so mild, many people already experience one or more of these problems before they are diagnosed.
It can be difficult to tell whether a person has a natural narrow face or long face syndrome. You will need to see a dentist or health professional if you think you or your child has long face syndrome.
In children, a medical professional may suggest long face syndrome if he notices that a child is a mouth breather and has a misaligned jaw or “gummy” smile.
In adults, long face syndrome is often discovered during a diagnosis of sleep apnea or dental disease.
When long face syndrome is suspected, the doctor or dentist will start by examining the face. They may take an X-ray to get accurate measurements of the facial proportions. In most cases, these measurements are sufficient to diagnose long face syndrome.
There are many possible causes of long face syndrome that are being studied. Researchers disagree about the exact cause of the condition. However, it is commonly believed that long face syndrome is caused by chronic nasal obstruction.
Chronic nasal obstruction leads to mouth breathing. It can be caused by narrowing of the nasal passages or enlargement of the adenoids, the tissue behind your nose.
Over time, mouth-only breathing can pull your jaw and pull your face down. Breathing only through your mouth also causes your tongue to press against your front teeth and can change the shape of your jaw.
Other causes of long face syndrome still need more research, but may include thumb-sucking and genetics. Some researchers believe that genetics may explain why some mouth-breathing children develop long face syndrome while others do not.
It is possible that long face syndrome develops due to a combination of factors.
Treatment for long face syndrome depends on when it is diagnosed. In children, there can be many options. Long face syndrome is easiest to treat when diagnosed in young children.
In some cases, the answer may be to clear the nasal obstruction. For example, surgical removal of adenoids may allow the child to breathe through the nose.
Since a child’s face is still growing, starting to breathe through their nose can completely correct the situation. As the child grows, his face will develop normally.
Older children may benefit from a combination approach. They may have surgery to remove the adenoids and wear braces or other orthodontic aids. This approach can prevent any further damage and repair the damage that has already occurred.
However, once the jaw is fixed, there are fewer options. Most people’s jaws are set by midlife. At this point, surgery to correct a nasal obstruction may help you breathe easier, but it will have no effect on long-face syndrome. This is why teenagers and adults with long face syndrome often need jaw surgery to correct their condition.
You won’t have surgery right away. Before you can have jaw surgery, you will need to wear braces for 12 to 18 months. Braces will help realign your jaw and put your teeth in the right positions.
In some cases, braces may be enough to completely correct long face syndrome, but in many cases, surgery will be required.
Your orthodontist and surgeon will work together to come up with a care plan for your case. Depending on how severe your jaw misalignment is, you may also need dental work, such as crowns or tooth reshaping.
Once the orthodontist and the surgeon agree that you are ready, you will undergo jaw surgery.
Surgery to correct long face syndrome is a type of jaw or orthognathic surgery.
You will have this surgery in a hospital or surgery center. On the day of surgery, you will have an IV placed in your arm to give you fluids and medications. You will receive anesthesia during your jaw surgery, so an anesthesiologist will be there to monitor you during the procedure.
A surgeon will make cuts in your jaw to move it into the correct position. Most of these cuts will be inside your mouth, but some may need to be made around the outside of your mouth as well.
The surgeon will use tiny screws and wires to stabilize your jaw. They will move your jaw into position and may reshape your jawbone so that it is smaller and fits better in your mouth.
You may need to stay in the hospital for a day or two after surgery. Healing can take 6 to 12 weeks. During this time, your surgeon will let you know what activities and foods are safe. You will likely be given a prescription to help manage your pain.
Once you’ve healed from surgery, you’ll need to wear braces again. These braces will help the changes from your surgery take effect. Your orthodontist will let you know how long you will need to wear the braces.
After the braces are removed, you will be given a retainer to wear at night. Your retainer will hold the teeth and jaw in place and you will wear it for as long as you are instructed to make sure your long face syndrome is fully corrected.
In recent years, less invasive procedures have become more and more common. For example, the use of mini screws and braces can replace jaw surgery.
The physical signs of long face syndrome can go unnoticed. However, there are some significant concerns for people with this condition. Long face syndrome can lead to sleep apnea, worn teeth, and more.
The earlier long face syndrome is noticed, the easier it is to correct. Children may need only one surgery to correct their nasal obstruction, but adults may need years of braces and complex jaw surgery to correct the condition.
