Long-term stability of treatment results after upper jaw segmented osteotomy according to Schuchardt for correction of anterior open bite.

Upper jaw osteotomy according to Schuchardt is a relatively rarely performed surgical procedure due to its narrow range of indications. Within the framework of a clinical follow-up examination using this method, we studied the long-term results in 26 patients, employing cephalometric analysis and analyzing the clinical findings. The results of this study show that the outcome of the operative correction of anterior open bite remained largely stable. Although partial relapse occurred in 3 cases (= 11.5%), there was a significant functional and esthetic improvement in comparison with the preoperative initial findings. When indicated, upper jaw osteotomy according to Schuchardt is thus a suitable surgical technique for correction of anterior open bite.