From May to July 2025, Dr. Jiang Houren’s Kaohsiung Special Clinic is here!

A patient with severe sleep apnea (AHI=69.8) decided to seek treatment because of severe snoring that affected his family's quality of life, especially after the birth of his child, and daytime sleepiness. After trying non-surgical methods such as side sleeping, positive pressure respirators, and anti-snoring braces with limited results, I finally chose to undergo MMA orthognathic surgery. After the operation, the AHI dropped from 69.8 to 13, and the minimum blood oxygen concentration during sleep increased from 53% to 83%. This not only improved the mental and physical strength, but also made the family no longer need to wear earplugs to sleep.

This 50-year-old woman suffered from severe sleep apnea (AHI = 40.5), with symptoms including severe daytime sleepiness (ESS = 17) and annoying snoring. Interestingly, a CT scan revealed that, in addition to the expected narrowing of her airways, she had undergone a Wassmund and Kole procedure in her youth. This procedure involves extracting one premolar from each side of her upper and lower jaws, then repositioning the upper and lower jaws through bone cutting to correct a protruding mouth.

Why might a receding chin cause breathing difficulties while sleeping? This article takes you inside the operating room, from pre- and post-operative images and 3D digital surgical planning to CT scans, to understand the relationship between a receding chin and airway narrowing, and how MMA orthognathic surgery increases airway space by moving the jawbone forward.

This patient had undergone orthodontic treatment with tooth extraction before, but later she found that the problems and concerns she had far exceeded whether her teeth were straight. This time she was referred to our center by a sleep specialist dentist, mainly to solve her severe daytime sleepiness and snoring problems during sleep. After a sleep test, she was diagnosed with moderate sleep apnea (AHI=19.4). CT also showed that her airway stenosis was caused by severe retraction of the mandible, which compressed the posterior airway space. Taking into account her obvious symptoms of sleep apnea (sleepiness, snoring), the cause (narrow bones, lack of space), and her expectations for appearance and occlusion, we designed an orthognathic surgery (MMA: maxillo-mandibular advancement) for her, which would widen her airway and improve her appearance and occlusion. Postoperative orthodontic treatment was performed by the referring physician using Invisilign. The sleep test result six months after the operation was AHI=1.4, which has returned to normal. The symptoms of snoring and sleepiness have disappeared, and she also likes the way she looks after the operation more.

A sleep apnea patient had to sleep in a separate room with his girlfriend due to severe snoring. After undergoing 3D customized orthognathic surgery and chin advancement surgery, I was most happy when I returned for a follow-up visit six months after the operation. The happiest thing was that my snoring had improved, my girlfriend no longer complained, and I could finally sleep in separate rooms. This case not only improved the patient's sleep quality, but also restored the couple's relationship, demonstrating the importance of sleep apnea treatment in improving the quality of life.

A patient with moderate to severe sleep apnea had a minimum blood oxygen concentration of only 44% during sleep. Not only did he suffer from severe snoring, but he also experienced dangerous breathing difficulties at night. Through the 3D customized orthognathic surgery performed by Dr. Jiang Houren of Fenghua United Clinic, the maxillary bone was moved forward by 6mm and the mandibular bone was moved forward by 12mm. This not only improved the problem of respiratory tract stenosis, but also solved the problem of facial distortion. After the operation, the patient's sleep quality has been significantly improved, snoring is no longer a problem, and the airway expansion has brought unprecedented smoothness.