This article was written by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Burak Sercan Erçin and is based on clinical experience. A specialist in Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery; prepared in accordance with current medical literature and personal surgical data. A consultation is recommended before making any medical decisions.
Jaw surgery is a form of aesthetic and corrective surgery that has been used for a long time. The necessity for this type of cosmetic surgery is due to the presence of a hereditary or acquired abnormality in the human jaw that differs from the natural shape of the jaws or owing to congenital abnormalities.
With the advancement of cosmetic medical procedures, doing this sort of jaw surgery has grown easier and safer than in the past, and it is now possible for the patient to view an integrated vision of all the outcomes prior to undertaking the procedure.
In this blog, we will go over everything you need to know about jaw surgery. What exactly is it, and how does it work?
In addition to its varieties, the most notable characteristics of jaw surgery, as well as its cost, and several pieces of advice may be of interest to you.
How Much Does Jaw Surgery Cost in Turkey? A Full Price Breakdown
Jaw surgery in Turkey costs between $5,000 and $16,000 depending on the specific procedure, not a flat single price. A single-jaw osteotomy (upper or lower jaw only) typically ranges from $5,700 to $8,500, while double jaw surgery, which involves both arches simultaneously; generally runs $8,000 to $16,000 for complex cases.
If chin refinement (genioplasty) is added in the same session, that adds approximately $2,000 to $4,000 on top. By comparison, the same surgery in the US costs an average of $35,000, meaning patients save around 75% by choosing Turkey.
Standard packages at accredited Istanbul hospitals include surgical fees, 3D imaging, anesthesia, hospital stay, and airport transfers, orthodontic treatment (braces), which is often required before or after surgery, is priced separately and completed in the patient’s home country.
Jaw Surgery Recovery in Turkey: What Happens Each Week
Recovery from jaw surgery follows a predictable sequence, not an open-ended “few months.” Primary bone fusion takes approximately 6 weeks, patients typically return to work within 2 to 4 weeks, and full bone stability with final aesthetic results requires 6 to 12 months.
In the first 48 hours: hospital observation, liquid diet, swelling onset.
Days 3–7: acute swelling, nasal congestion, and sore throat typically peak and begin to subside around days 7–10. Week 2: transition to soft foods (mashed, blended); most patients return to light desk work.
Weeks 3–6: gradual chewing function returns, jaw wiring or rubber bands may still be in place for stabilization.
Months 3–6: residual swelling continues to reduce; the final jawline and profile become visible. Temporary numbness in the lower lip or chin — caused by proximity to the inferior alveolar nerve — affects 5–10% of patients and resolves within 3 to 12 months in the vast majority of cases. Permanent nerve damage is rare, occurring in under 1% of cases at high-volume centres.
Who is a good candidate for maxillofacial surgery?
Previously, maxillofacial surgery was only performed on individuals who had evident difficulties with their upper or lower jaws, causing issues with biting, eating, and digesting.
As a result of the aesthetic notion, it is now thought that the jaw should be in proportion to the face. In short, these procedures are performed not only for patients who have biting and chewing issues but also for those who have cosmetic concerns.
What are the different kinds of maxillofacial surgery?
Maxillofacial procedures are recommended if the patient has difficulty biting or chewing, and they are classified into two types:
- Orthodontic treatments
- Repositioning the jaw bones forward or backward (Overbite and Underbite)
When compared to jaw operations conducted just for cosmetic purposes, these treatments are more extensive and have a longer recovery period. It necessitates collaboration with dentists and orthodontists, and it is a procedure that demands patience but yields excellent results.
Patients who do not have difficulty biting or chewing might undergo this surgery for cosmetic reasons since their jaws disrupt the harmony of their faces.
This sort of cosmetic jaw surgery is less difficult since the recovery procedure is simpler and quicker. The surgery takes around 15-20 minutes and will not interfere with eating in the postoperative period.
Abnormalities that impair the overall harmony of the face can manifest in patients in a variety of ways. To be clear, jaw lift surgery is the most effective way for addressing these jaw irregularities in general.
What Are The Benefits Of Jaw Surgery?
Jaw surgery helps restore the natural form of the upper jaw, and lower jaw, which improves the overall appearance of the jawbone, has a beneficial impact on his psychological health, and restores his confidence in the patient and their appearance.
One of the most essential outcomes of jawbone surgery is the restoration of jaw function, which includes the capacity to chew food and speak, which the patient loses due to the inability to naturally govern the mouth. This medical condition is known as (severe malocclusion ).
Jaw surgery is an effective treatment for abnormalities that arise on the lower jaw as a consequence of exposure to certain accidents or as a result of malignant tumors that cause bone loss and erosion.
Jaw surgeries are not considered modern procedures because they have been known for decades and continued to develop until they were first performed in their current form in 1963, making them among the cosmetic surgeries that were performed at a relatively early time, which significantly increases their safety rates.
Upper or lower jaw surgery does not usually result in major problems. By following the doctor’s directions, all post-operative issues can be prevented or managed.
Is Jaw Surgery in Turkey Safe? What the Data Says
Jaw surgery in Turkey is safe when performed at an accredited facility by a board-certified maxillofacial or plastic surgeon — and the safety data supports this. Complication rates at experienced centers for orthognathic surgery in Turkey are approximately 4%, identical to rates published in Western countries per the International Journal of Oral Surgery (2024). Overall, orthognathic surgery carries a success rate of 90–95%; primary risks are temporary nerve numbness in up to 50% of patients (almost always resolving within a year), minor infections in 1–10%, and a 4–6.4% relapse rate where the jaw gradually shifts post-surgery. Turkey has over 50 JCI-accredited hospitals — the same international benchmark used in the US and Europe. When evaluating a surgeon, the key questions to ask are: annual volume of orthognathic cases performed, board certification (EBOPRAS for plastic surgeons, or an oral and maxillofacial surgery specialist diploma), and whether the facility has an in-house anaesthesiology team and overnight monitoring capability — essential for double-jaw procedures performed under general anaesthesia.
Do You Need Braces Before Jaw Surgery in Turkey?
Yes — for most patients undergoing full orthognathic surgery, pre-surgical orthodontic treatment is required and cannot be skipped. The reason: braces align the teeth into the position they will occupy after the bone has been moved; without this, the bite will not close correctly once the jaws are repositioned. Pre-surgical orthodontics typically takes 12 to 18 months and is completed in the patient’s home country before travelling to Istanbul for the procedure. Post-surgical braces (worn for 6 to 12 months) then fine-tune the final bite relationship and ensure long-term stability. This means the total treatment timeline from first consultation to finished result is typically 18 to 36 months — the surgery itself is one step within that journey, not the entire process. Some clinics in Turkey offer a “Surgery First” approach, which skips pre-surgical orthodontics and moves the jaw first; this method uses advanced 3D tomography and AI imaging to simulate the outcome beforehand, and is only appropriate for specific case profiles — it is not a universal shortcut. Patients considering Turkey for jaw surgery should coordinate their orthodontist at home and the surgeon in Istanbul from the start to ensure the treatment plan is unified.
Advice For Pre-Operative Measures:
To decrease the danger of bleeding, it is best to avoid all drugs that enhance blood flow during the preoperative period.
It is also essential to notify the doctor about the drugs being used, as well as exhibiting the patient’s history – if any – in full so that he is aware of all the precautions that should be followed before conducting the operation.
It is critical to have a thorough talk with the doctor regarding all aspects of the procedure.
Advice After Jaw Surgery:
To notice the results and deal with any consequences, it is required to have a recovery period of no less than two weeks and to be under the watchful supervision of the doctor for a period of no less than 48 hours starting from the time of recovery.
Dr. Burak will offer you some instructions and advice, such as what sort of food to consume and how to care for yourself following the procedure. MTS will return to work, but not for at least a week, and maybe up to three weeks.
The healing period will begin after 6 weeks, however the total recovery time following the procedure maybe 3 months.
After the surgery, the patient may not notice the results of the procedure immediately, but after 10 days to two weeks, the consequences of the orthognathic surgery will become noticeable.
This content was written by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Burak Sercan Erçin in line with clinical experience and current medical literature. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice. A personal consultation with Dr. Erçin is recommended for individual assessment.
Faculty Member · Bahçeşehir University
Graduate of Ege University Faculty of Medicine, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Erçin completed advanced fellowships at Tampa General Hospital (USA) under Dr. Deniz Dayıcıoğlu in breast reconstruction and burn surgery, and at the clinic of Dr. Pedro Cavadas in Valencia, Spain in reconstructive microsurgery. After passing the EBOPRAS examination in 2018, he joined Bahçeşehir University as a faculty member and continues his private practice on Bağdat Avenue, Istanbul, specialising in face, breast and body aesthetics alongside complex reconstructive surgery.
