Man, 24, undergoes five-hour jaw realignment after a decade of taunts about underbite

Luke McLuckie, a 24-year-old account executive from New Islington, Manchester, began developing an underbite when he was about 13. His lower jaw protruded in front of his upper teeth by more than 1.5 cm, a difference that grew more noticeable over time. A routine dental appointment in 2015 told him he would need surgery to realign his jaw but that he would have to wait until he was at least 18 to ensure his skull had fully grown.

As he waited for the chance to fix what he described as an ever-worsening deformity, McLuckie said his mental health suffered. He became self-conscious about his side profile, and would avoid talking to people when seen from the side. At university, he felt held back from joining new societies or attending socials. "I was very insecure about my side profile," he recalled. "When I laughed or smiled, it would be really obvious." Cruel comments added to the burden, he said, with the worst moments often coming from strangers.

McLuckie’s underbite was measured at more than 1.5 cm, and he described how the taunts, especially on nights out, amplified his insecurity. "The worst things came from strangers," he said, noting that remarks about his jaw followed him through social settings. He said such comments influenced his willingness to share photos from milestones, including a European cycling tour he completed before surgery.

In July this year, he finally underwent the five-hour realignment operation at Queens Medical Centre in Nottingham to correct the underbite and restore facial symmetry. The surgical team realigned his bite by moving the upper jaw forward and adjusting the lower jaw. The procedure involved cutting the gums open and shunting the top jaw forward by 11 cm and moving the bottom jaw back by 4 mm. The operation left his face swollen and caused sharp nerve pain, tied to the titanium plates and screws securing the jaw in place.

Recovery was arduous. He endured a six-week liquid diet and remained housebound for about a month. "All the doctors were saying I looked like a different person and this is what I wanted to hear," he said. The initial days were tough, with a sensation similar to having an open wound from the hardware inside his mouth. He described mental and physical adjustments, like not being able to chew or experience normal eating pleasures.

Four months on, the transformation has been striking. He recalled the moment he first noticed his new profile in a pub mirror: "I looked like a completely different person. I smiled and my bite line was perfect." Yet friends still took time to recognise him at first. "Every friend I've met since surgery, there is a period of adjustment about five to ten minutes where they look at me. They know it's Luke because of my mannerisms, but I don't look like Luke and they look at me like a stranger, and it takes them a few minutes to warm up." He still requires braces for up to a year to complete the correction.

Beyond the physical changes, McLuckie has become an advocate for others facing similar conditions. He notes that only about 10 percent of the impact is physical; the rest is mental—how the condition affects self-image, confidence, and social participation. He is determined to raise awareness of the stigma surrounding facial misalignment and the breathing and sleeping problems that can accompany it. "If you see someone on the street or someone you know and you're judging them because they don't look quite right, the looks are just the tip of the iceberg," he said. "That person is suffering from not being able to eat or breathe properly, not sleeping well and not liking what they look like in the mirror either."