Through orthodontics and jaw repositioning surgery, two Florida dentists become "LifeChangers"

By DentistryIQ.com staff and contributed reports
Samantha Weichhan is a beautiful 15-year-old girl from Hollywood, Fla., but her underbite is so severe, it is ruining her life.

People make fun of her wherever she goes and she is extremely self-conscious. She cannot chew her food due to the bizarre configuration of her teeth so she has resorted to eating only soft things. She needs multiple surgeries, which will require having her jaw broken followed by full-on orthodontics, but her parents just cannot afford it and time is running out.But that’s where two dentists are making a difference.Dr. Margo Brilliant is an orthodontist in Aventura, Fla., whose practice Brilliant, Rothenberg & Meister (along with Miami-based Oral-Facial Surgeon Dr. Jeff Blum) agreed in conjunction to perform a "life-changing" procedure. The cost of the surgery and braces is estimated to be more than $50,000.Dr. Drew's "LifeChangers" program contacted Dr. Brilliant in hopes that she had a patient who was in need of jaw reconstruction and might want to be helped by the doctors. Dr. Brilliant immediately thought of Samantha and Samantha and her mother Karen flew to Los Angeles to be taped for the show. Little did they know that, through Skype, Dr. Brilliant would surprise them with the pre-operative attention she needed and invited Dr. Blum to perform the jaw reconstruction surgery. See the link of the show (which aired on October 13 and will air again once the surgery takes place (sometime in February 2012)) by clicking here.

“With a combination of orthodontics and jaw repositioning surgery, we will make a night-and-day difference in Samantha’s appearance, function, self-esteem, socialization, and future,” said Dr. Blum of Blum-Nico Oral-Facial Surgery Associates. “Of all the procedures I perform, the dramatic and life-changing effect of orthognathic surgery is the most rewarding. Being able to make as great of a positive change in a young person with all of its ramifications is a great joy. Being able to provide these services for someone as deserving, but without the means to pay for it, is all the more gratifying.” Samantha's treatment will consist of three distinct phases:1. Pre-operative orthodontics -- The teeth will move into their proper relation over the existing bone, regardless of how they fit together in her head. Once the teeth are in proper position as determined by models of the teeth and by X-ray position, she will be ready for phase 2. It is during this phase that any necessary teeth will be removed.2. Orthognathic surgery -- In the operating rooms, under general anesthesia, the bone of both her upper and lower jaws will be sectioned in such a manner that they can be moved as a unit and rigidly fixed to the underlying bony skeleton with the alignment guaranteed by a prefabricated surgical guide fitting the teeth in their proper relationship. In Samantha's case, her lower jaw would be moved posteriorly and her upper anteriorly.Her teeth wo

uld be held together by elastic bands for a few days and the elastics would be used for guidance of her bite. She would be required to remain on a soft diet for about four to five weeks but could return to most activities within a week.3. Post-surgical orthodontics -- This begins about three to four weeks after surgery and is the phase that the final "fine tuning" of her bite is accomplished.The ultimate goal is to have Samantha have both a fully functional and esthetic jaw and a beautiful smile.As of posting date, Samantha has only been home a week but she’s already seen both doctors and her transformation is well underway.