I'm concerned about my teenage nephew who possibly has a problem with his jaw bone (mandible). His teeth are fine, and his bite is fine (all the teeth hit in the right places - incisors first). In his neutral position where his lips are closed, his teeth are still far apart - for most people they'd probably be closed together. In this position it looks like he has a strong square jaw, but when he clenches his teeth to show them, it looks like he doesn't.
This is affecting his speech (problems with articulating consonants clearly) and smiling (since he has to clench his jaw to show them). There's no pain involved however.
He's seen both his dentist about it, and some orthodontists, but they haven't said much about it. The dentist said if puts crown implants on the teeth, if the teeth continue to grow it result in great pain to the temporomandibular regions of the jaw, along with headaches. She's also positive that he doesn't have a TMJ Disorder.
Does anyone know what his jaw problems called - along with the correct surgery?
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