Senior Jamie Johnson has always had trouble eating burritos.

“For most people there’ll be a noticeable bite [mark]. But if I were eating a burrito, I could get all the filling but not the tortilla.”

A quarter-inch gap prevented her from biting with her front teeth.

“My front teeth didn’t meet, so I had to bite and chew with my molars,” she said.

Six titanium bone plates, 24 screws, two weeks of numbness, a small infection, and a couple cuts and bruises later, Johnson’s “open bite” has been fixed.

She underwent maxillofacial surgery on her upper and lower jaws, Jan. 28, missing two weeks of school.

For 12 days, her mouth was wired to keep her jaw shut.

“I drank a lot of smoothies, protein shakes, and pureed chili,” she said.

Johnson’s surgeon told her there are 350-500 such surgeries every year. And in rare cases, patients can end up with permanently numbed jaws.

“They can’t cut the nerves [in your face] to get to the bone, because the nerves would never go back together. So instead, they push the nerves and move them out of the way,” Johnson said.

Johnson’s face is still swollen, “but it’s not that noticeable,” she said. “I was really swollen for a little while. I looked like my face was a square.”

Swelling can last for three months, and it takes a full six months for the jaw to heal completely.
To help speed the recovery process, Johnson was given giant ice packs to tie around her face—one on top, one on the bottom, and one on each side.

“The three things I was ordered to do after my surgery was walk, talk and ice!”

Although her mouth was wired shut, Johnson could talk. In fact, her doctor recommended talking a lot because it helps the blood in the facial muscles flow.

However, for six weeks after her surgery, Johnson isn’t allowed to blow her nose.
“I can sniff and I can let it drip and then wipe it,” she said.

Usually, when patients are anesthetized, doctors place tubes in the patients’ mouths to monitor their breathing.

Because her surgeon was operating on her jaw, the tube went through her nose.

“I got a couple of nose bleeds. And I’ve never had a nose bleed before this,” Johnson said.

And she still can’t eat crunchy foods like chips because her jaw muscles are weak.

She’s also not allowed to carry anything heavier than five pounds, as lifting heavy objects causes the muscles to tense.

But Johnson’s found a way to continue participating in sports.

“For softball I have to wear a full-face helmet because it would really suck to get hit in the jaw and have to get surgery again. I did a ski race last Monday, and I had the full-face helmet [there too],” Johnson said.

“I just can’t over-exert myself.”

But Johnson’s surgery came with a perk: she is the only high-school student currently allowed to chew gum.

“It helps strengthen my muscles. [Sue Nellis, head of high school] sent out an e-mail to all my teachers,” Johnson said.

While she was gone, senior Angelica Gonzalez, Student Council vice president, took over Johnson’s presidential duties.

And senior Matt Akins recorded all of Johnson’s classes.

Even after her jaw returns to full strength, Johnson won’t be through with all of her dental troubles.

For one thing, she needs to get molds for a new retainer.

“My old one no longer fits me because my mouth is different.”

And she’ll have to wear braces for another three-to-six months.

Actually, Johnson has worn braces, a retainer or both since fourth grade.

“When people complain, ‘Oh, I have to have braces for six months,’ I’m just like, oh, shut up!”

And she has had 11 teeth pulled. In addition, one of her canines (pointed conical teeth) grew in horizontally, causing the roots of her front teeth to be abnormally short. These are susceptible to easy damage and may fall out.

Johnson is also missing a permanent tooth.

“My dentist said, ‘Jamie, I’ve seen all of the problems that you have. But just never in the same mouth.’”

Johnson’s mother, Susan, thinks Johnson’s missing tooth may be hereditary. Her aunt was also missing some permanent teeth.

After her surgery, Johnson returned to the hospital to have her wires removed, and she returned again when one of the cuts in her mouth contracted an infection.

“I have one cut under my upper lip and two in my lower jaw. And there’s a little bit of bruising on the underside of my jaw.”

Johnson’s surgery left some unnatural (and permanent) marks in her mouth, too: six bone plates and 24 screws will remain there.

“They’re made out of titanium, so, no, I will not beep when I go through passport security,” she said, laughing.

But Johnson is optimistic the surgery will leave a mark in more beneficial ways.

“I’ve always had a speech impediment because of the huge gap between my teeth. I think it’s likely my impediment will slowly go away.”

Johnson’s father, Jay, thinks the surgery’s effect on her appearance is very subtle.

“For some people, it’s really dramatic in the way it affects their appearance, but [Johnson’s] was more functional than aesthetic,” Jay said.

Johnson’s mother agrees.

“It’s subtle, but her dad and I can really tell the difference. Now her front teeth are over her lower teeth,” Susan said.

And that means Johnson can finally bite into tortillas.