Donning his bright green shirt, Michael Van Gerwen has dominated the darts stage with unparalleled ferocity, sweeping one championship after another. Despite his formidable presence, he’s also someone who has a big smile, adding a touch of charm to his competitive demeanour.
Lately, however, there has been much attention on his teeth, with many wondering what exactly even happened to them. Did Michael lose a tooth? Why did Michael get dental surgery (and that, too, a very major one)? Fear not. We might have some surprising answers for you about Michael Van Gerwen’s teeth.
Who Is Michael Van Gerwen?
Michael Van Gerwen (MvG) is a three-time World Darts Champion who is considered one of the greatest players of all time, only second to Phil Taylor.
After he started playing darts at the wee age of 13, he soon enough went on to make a name for himself in the sport. When he was just 17, Michael made a televised 9-darter against Raymond van Barneveld in the 2007 Master of Darts – a record only recently broken by Luke Littler!
Other than winning the PDC championship title in 2014, 2017 and 2019, he has several other notches on his belt; Michael’s a 6-time Premier Darts League winner and a 5-time World Grand Prix and Masters title holder.
He’s also won the European Championship four times and was crowned the Grand Slam of Darts in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Now, at the age of 35, even with the talks of the Dutchman being out of form, he ranks second on the PDC’s world rankings.
What Is Wrong With Michael Van Gerwen’s Teeth?
Michael Van Gerwen suffered from a class 3 malocclusion called an underbite, where his upper jaw was smaller than his lower one, and his lower jaw was abnormally jutted forward.
The condition affected his bite, breathing and sleep, as well as caused headaches. Michael said the following about his condition, as reported in the Daily Star:
“My upper jaw is a lot smaller than my lower jaw, so my under-bite is over a centimetre. I can’t even bite a slice of ham.
If your upper jaw is too small, you get less oxygen through your nose and that causes headaches, less sleep, things like that.
At one point you ignore it, and then you realise you have to do something about it.”
An underbite can also cause other problems like bad breath and temporomandibular joint disorder. As well, the teeth can suffer from decay and can be more vulnerable to trauma. You may also experience gum issues.
An underbite can be caused by parafunctional oral habits, such as tongue thrusting, thumb and pacifier sucking, feeding through a bottle for a long time, and biting the nails.
Other causes can include genetics or an injury to the jaw. However, if you have malocclusion, you must talk to a medical professional for a proper diagnosis.
What Happened To Michael Van Gerwen’s Teeth?
There are different treatments for an underbite, such as braces, jaw expanders, tooth extraction and surgery. In Michael’s case, since his condition was quite severe, he had a “dental and jaw surgery,” as reported in Metro:
“…I needed to have pre-planned dental and jaw surgery which meant that I missed the World Cup of Darts.
With the schedule being so busy it is always hard to fit in anything like this, especially with an operation which involves a lot of recovery time.
“In my case, I might not look or sound the same for a little while and I’ll soon have braces fitted as well as needing some further surgery in the future…”
Michael didn’t specify the exact type of surgery he had the first time. However, after the first procedure, he did say that he wasn’t “even halfway through.” He mentioned needing another surgery in which both his upper and lower jaws will be broken so they align with each other.
There needed to be at least a year between the operations, and after the second one, he’d have to wear braces for 2 more years before his treatment would be “about finished”, as reported in The Sun.
An orthognathic jaw surgery is one type of procedure that can be done in more severe cases of malocclusion.
In this procedure, the jawbones are cut into, and the bones are fixed into a new position with the help of screws, wires, bone plates and bands, as per Mayo Clinic.
They also note that if needed, the surgeon may take bone from a different part of your body and add it to the jaw, or the bone may be reshaped. Braces help improve the alignment of the teeth after the surgery.
However, again, since Michael hasn’t revealed all the specific details of his surgery, we can’t say for sure what exactly he’s having done as a part of his treatment.
Has Michael Van Gerwen Lost His Teeth?
It’s possible that the gaps between Michael Van Gerwen’s teeth are the result of the dental treatment he’s undergoing and not because he lost his tooth in a traumatic injury of sorts.
Vincent van der Voot, a friend of Michael’s, said the following about his condition, as reported in Daily Star:
“…he was very quiet. You know, in his teeth it’s all crooked. There are eight millimetres between his front teeth.
That looks really weird. He’s ashamed of that, too. He doesn’t feel comfortable with the situation.
During the match, he kept his mouth shut continuously. We all hope he will be back to his old self soon. But this is not solved within a few days”
Conclusion
While we don’t know what caused Michael Van Gerwen’s teeth to have an underbite, it was clearly a more severe case of malocclusion, which would explain the extensive treatment he’s having to resolve the issue once and for all.
If you’re also experiencing a dental issue, it’s important that you get in touch with a board-certified medical professional for a proper diagnosis and an effective treatment plan.