Displacement of the mandible after removal of the intermaxillary fixation following oblique sliding osteotomy.

In an earlier study (Rosenquist et al., 1985) on oblique sliding osteotomy in 14 patients, operative repositioning and postoperative displacement of the mandible during intermaxillary fixation were presented. In the present stereometric study on the same patients displacement of the mandible after removal of the intermaxillary fixation is presented. A continuous anterior and a minor initial cranial translation and an anterior rotation of the mandible were found. Proclination of both upper and lower incisors was recorded. Correlations were found between operative repositioning and postoperative displacement of the mandible after removal of the intermaxillary fixation. Possible relapse mechanisms are discussed.