“Is jaw surgery necessary for overbite?”

Corrective jaw surgery (orthognathic surgery) is considered in cases where the skeletal base of the upper and lower jaws do not grow in a coordinated fashion. The jaws may not coordinate in the profile of the face, the length of the face, or the symmetry of the face. That is to say, there are dental overbite problems with good alignment of the jaws (normal lip support, nasal projection, chin position, and facial proportions), and there are cases where overbite is associated with abnormal jaw positions that would be best managed with a combination of orthodontic treatment and corrective jaw surgery. See an Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeon for evaluation if you believe your case is more than just a teeth problem.

PC

Yes, it is most effective for an overbite more than a few millimeters over your lower teeth.

The necessity for jaw surgery in cases of jaw discrepancy between top and bottom (maxilla and mandible, respectively) depends on your age. If you are 10-15 years of age, you can typically restrict the growth of whichever jaw (upper or lower) is overgrown or further forward.

In the case of an overbite (or "overjet"), your upper jaw is out in front of your lower jaw. If you are still developing skeletally, you could use headgear to restrict or slow the growth of the upper jaw. This way, your mandible or lower jaw, can catch up.

If you are an adult, skeletal growth is complete. At this point, you can only move teeth. In cases of a dramatic jaw discrepancy you can only partially correct because of an inability to modulate skeletal growth.

In these cases, with adults, the only way you can modify skeletal relation between your upper and lower jaw is to perform surgery.

If your upper teeth hang over your lower teeth by more than a few millimeters — and you want to see a marked improvement — jaw surgery will likely be necessary. Orthodontic treatments cannot fully correct significant bite problems.