Jaw surgery in Turkey: what you should know before you book
Orthognathic surgery — corrective jaw surgery — moves the upper jaw, the lower jaw or both into a new position so that the teeth meet properly and the face is in balance. It is the treatment for a bite that braces alone cannot fix: a lower jaw that sits too far back or too far forward, a mouth that does not close at the front, a visibly asymmetric face, a long or gummy upper jaw, and some cases of sleep apnoea. Patients travel to Turkey for it because the surgery, a hospital stay and the imaging cost roughly a third to a half of private jaw surgery in the UK or the US, and because maxillofacial surgeons at the larger hospitals perform it every week.
What makes jaw surgery different from most treatments on this site is that the operation is one step in a plan that usually takes two to three years: braces to line the teeth up for the new jaw position, the surgery, then braces again to settle the bite. The surgeon in Turkey and the orthodontist at home must work from the same plan, and that is the first thing to arrange. This guide covers the cost, the operations, how the orthodontic work is coordinated, the trip, recovery and risks. Hospitals offering it are listed on the dental treatments hub and under oral and maxillofacial surgery.
How much does jaw surgery cost in Turkey?
The hospitals on our site do not publish a fixed list price for orthognathic surgery in Turkey, because it depends on whether one or both jaws are moved, whether the chin is repositioned, and the planning involved. The Turkish figures below are approximate ranges for international patients, confirmed in a written quote after the surgeon has studied your records.
| Country | Single jaw (upper or lower) | Double jaw surgery | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | about €5,000–€9,000 (approximate, confirmed in a written quote) | about €8,000–€14,000 (approximate, confirmed in a written quote) | Surgeon, anaesthetist, 2–3 nights in hospital, plates and screws, CBCT scan and 3D planning, transfers, interpreter; hotel nights often included |
| United Kingdom | about £12,000–£20,000 privately | about £20,000–£35,000 privately | NHS funds surgery for a functional problem after assessment; waiting times are long |
| United States | about $20,000–$35,000 | about $35,000–$60,000 | Surgeon, hospital and anaesthesia billed separately; insurance covers some functional cases |
| Germany | about €8,000–€14,000 privately | about €14,000–€25,000 privately | Statutory insurance covers medically indicated cases |
What changes the price: one jaw or two, an added genioplasty (chin repositioning), custom-made cutting guides and plates, the number of hospital nights, and any orthodontic work done in Turkey. Usually not included: flights, the braces or aligners at home before and after surgery (often £3,000–£6,000 privately in the UK), later plate removal, and treatment of a complication after you return. Payment is made directly to the hospital on arrival; a quote costs nothing, and our part is explained on the how it works page. If your problem is functional, ask your dentist first whether the NHS or your insurer would fund the operation at home before you compare prices.
Which jaw problems orthognathic surgery corrects
| Problem | What it looks like | Usual operation |
|---|---|---|
| Class II (overbite, retrognathia) | Lower jaw and chin set back, upper teeth far in front of the lower, often a weak chin profile and mouth breathing | Lower jaw advancement (BSSO), sometimes with genioplasty |
| Class III (underbite surgery, prognathism) | Lower teeth in front of the upper, prominent lower jaw or a flat midface | Upper jaw advancement (Le Fort I), lower jaw setback, or both |
| Anterior open bite | Front teeth do not touch when the back teeth are closed; difficulty biting | Upper jaw repositioning (Le Fort I), often with the lower jaw |
| Facial asymmetry | Chin or jaw deviated to one side, a tilted smile line | Double jaw surgery with rotation; genioplasty |
| Long face or gummy smile | Too much gum showing, lips that do not close at rest | Upper jaw impaction (Le Fort I) |
| Obstructive sleep apnoea | Narrow airway behind the tongue, usually with a small lower jaw | Maxillomandibular advancement of both jaws (see sleep apnoea surgery) |
A small chin on its own can be treated with a chin implant or a sliding genioplasty without moving the jaws, and a crowded bite without a skeletal problem is treated with braces or clear aligners alone. Orthognathic surgery is for problems in the bone. Patients who also want the nose changed usually have rhinoplasty later, once the jaws have healed, because moving the upper jaw changes the base of the nose.
Braces, surgery, braces: how the plan works when you live abroad
The conventional sequence is 12–18 months of orthodontics to decompensate the teeth (move them into the position they will need after the jaws are moved, which temporarily makes the bite look worse), the operation, then 6–12 months of orthodontics to fine-tune the bite. A "surgery-first" approach, where the jaws are moved before the braces go on, shortens the total time but suits only some bites and needs very close cooperation between surgeon and orthodontist.
For surgery in Turkey the arrangement that works is: your orthodontist at home does the braces before and after, and agrees the surgical plan with the Turkish surgeon in advance. The surgeon needs a recent panoramic X-ray and lateral cephalogram, a cone-beam CT, photographs and models of your teeth; from these the team plans the movements in 3D and makes the splints or cutting guides used in theatre. Do not book until the orthodontist has confirmed in writing that the teeth are ready and the plan is agreed; a surgeon who offers to operate from photographs alone is not planning your case. Doing all the orthodontics in Turkey too means several trips and visits every few weeks that are hard to keep up.
Who is a candidate for jaw surgery?
Jaw growth must be finished: usually from about 16–17 in girls and 18–20 in boys, confirmed on X-ray. Candidates have a skeletal bite problem that orthodontics cannot correct alone, are in good general health, do not smoke or will stop for at least six weeks before and after surgery, and can accept a recovery of several weeks on a soft diet. Good reasons for surgery are difficulty biting and chewing, speech problems, jaw joint pain, lip incompetence, sleep apnoea and a facial imbalance that bothers you; surgeons are cautious with purely cosmetic requests when the bite is normal.
Surgery is delayed or declined for patients with uncontrolled diabetes, bleeding disorders, active gum disease, untreated psychiatric illness, or unrealistic expectations. Jaw surgery changes the lower face noticeably; the 3D simulation shows the expected change, but it is a prediction, not a promise.
How orthognathic surgery is performed and your stay in Turkey
The operation is done under general anaesthesia and takes about 2 hours for one jaw and 3–5 hours for both. All cuts are inside the mouth, so there are no visible scars. In a Le Fort I osteotomy the upper jaw is cut above the roots of the teeth, moved into the planned position and fixed with small titanium plates and screws. In a bilateral sagittal split osteotomy (BSSO) the lower jaw is split behind the back teeth on both sides, slid forward or back and fixed with plates. A genioplasty moves the chin bone through the same incision. Elastic bands between the upper and lower braces guide the bite for the first weeks; rigid wiring of the jaws is rarely used now.
Plan 10–14 days in Turkey: arrival, examination, final planning and blood tests on days 1–2; surgery on day 3 with 2–3 nights in hospital, usually one of them under closer observation; a review of the swelling, bite and X-rays around day 7; and a final check before you fly at about 10–14 days, when the risk of bleeding has passed and you can manage the elastics and diet yourself.
Jaw surgery recovery, week by week
- Days 1–3: the face is very swollen and the nose blocked after upper jaw surgery; pain is controlled with medication, and you drink from a cup or syringe. A short course of steroids and antibiotics is usual.
- Week 1–2: swelling peaks at about day 3 and falls steadily; liquid and then puréed diet; numbness of the lower lip and chin after lower jaw surgery is expected at this stage. Most patients fly home at the end of week 2.
- Weeks 3–6: soft foods, gentle mouth opening exercises, a return to desk work from about week 2–3; no contact sport. Elastics are adjusted by your orthodontist at home.
- Weeks 6–12: normal chewing is usually allowed from about six weeks as the bone unites; orthodontic fine-tuning begins, and feeling in the lip returns in most patients over these months.
- 6–12 months: residual swelling gone, braces removed, the final face and bite visible. Plates are left in unless they cause problems.
Risks and complications of orthognathic surgery
Orthognathic surgery is a major operation with a low mortality but a known set of complications. The figures below come from the British Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons' patient information and from published series; they vary with the operation and the surgeon.
- Nerve numbness: altered sensation of the lower lip and chin is almost universal after lower jaw surgery because the nerve runs through the bone that is cut; it recovers in most patients within months, but published series report lasting altered sensation in roughly 1 in 10 patients, more in older patients. Numbness of the upper lip, cheeks and gums after Le Fort I is usually temporary.
- Bleeding: significant bleeding is uncommon; upper jaw surgery occasionally needs a transfusion, which is one reason to operate in a hospital rather than a clinic.
- Infection and plate problems: wound infection in a few per cent of patients; plates sometimes need removing later under local or general anaesthesia.
- Unexpected fracture ("bad split"): the lower jaw splits in the wrong plane in a small proportion of BSSO operations and needs extra fixation.
- Relapse: the jaws drift partly back towards the old position in some patients, especially after large movements and in open bites; elastics and orthodontic retention reduce it, and occasionally a second operation is needed.
- Other: jaw joint pain, changes to the shape of the nose after upper jaw surgery, a non-union that fails to heal (rare), the general risks of a long anaesthetic, and a result that differs from the simulation.
Choosing a hospital for jaw surgery in Turkey
The operation should be done by an oral and maxillofacial surgeon (or a plastic surgeon with craniofacial training) in a licensed hospital with an intensive-care unit, a blood bank and 3D planning. Ask how many orthognathic operations the surgeon performs a year, to see before-and-after cases of a bite like yours with the cephalograms, whether planning is done with your orthodontist, and who you contact after you fly home. Insist on a written quote listing the included nights, imaging, plates and follow-up, and on your operation report, X-rays and 3D plan to take back to your orthodontist. If a clinic proposes a date before anyone has seen your X-rays and spoken to your orthodontist, go elsewhere.
Hospitals with Dental Treatments in Turkey
Frequently asked questions
Approximately €5,000–€9,000 for one jaw and €8,000–€14,000 for double jaw surgery at a hospital in Turkey, including the stay, imaging and plates, confirmed in a written quote. Private single jaw surgery costs about £12,000–£20,000 in the UK and $20,000–$35,000 in the US; double jaw surgery costs roughly double.
Yes, and that is the usual arrangement: your orthodontist does the braces before and after, and the surgeon in Turkey operates from your X-rays, cone-beam CT, photographs and models, with the plan agreed between them in writing before you book. Do not book until the orthodontist confirms the teeth are ready.
Plan 10–14 days: examination and planning on days 1–2, surgery on day 3 with 2–3 nights in hospital, a review at about a week and a final check before you fly at 10–14 days.
No visible ones. All the incisions are inside the mouth, including for a genioplasty of the chin.
Major swelling settles over two to three weeks, a liquid then soft diet lasts about six weeks, desk work resumes at two to three weeks, normal chewing at about six weeks, and the final result with braces off takes 6–12 months. Numbness of the lip usually improves over several months.
After lower jaw surgery, almost always at first, because the nerve to the lip runs through the bone that is cut. In most patients feeling returns over weeks to months; published series report some lasting altered sensation in roughly 1 in 10 patients, more often in older patients.
It is a longer operation (3–5 hours) with more swelling, a higher chance of needing a transfusion and a longer hospital stay, but in experienced hands the complication rate per jaw is similar. It is chosen when both jaws are out of position, as in many underbites and asymmetries.
Yes, noticeably: the profile, chin position, lip support and smile all change with the jaw position. The surgeon's 3D simulation shows the expected result, but it is a prediction, not a guarantee, and some swelling persists for months.
Rarely. Most patients need 12–18 months of braces or aligners before surgery and 6–12 months after. A surgery-first approach exists for selected bites, but it still needs orthodontics afterwards and close cooperation between the surgeon and your orthodontist.
Advancing both jaws (maxillomandibular advancement) enlarges the airway and is an established treatment for obstructive sleep apnoea in selected patients, usually those with a small lower jaw who cannot tolerate CPAP. It needs a sleep study first; see also sleep apnoea surgery under ENT.