A woman who broke her jaw in a childhood cycling accident says doctors have helped her to look in the mirror without crying for the first time in 20 years.

Gina Katsaitis, from Twickenham, went through two operations at Northwick Park Hospital, in Harrow, to correct the defect that caused her face to become “skewed” by the time she was a teenager.

The 36-year-old, who spent her childhood in South Africa, was six years old when she fell off her bike.

The injury caused Ms Katsaitis’ jaw to protrude at an angle and left her unable to bite properly.

She also suffered from tension headaches, as well as anxiety and depression over the way she looked.

She said: “For the last 20 years, I was not able to look at myself in the mirror. During photographs, I used to always stand sideways. The operation changed everything.

“My bite is much better and I don’t suffer from the terrible tension headaches I once did. The biggest improvement though has been to my confidence.

“It’s changed my life completely. I don’t cry anymore when I look in the mirror.”

Ms Katsaitis moved to the UK in 2011 and started to search for doctors who could help her.

During her search, she came across Manolis Heliotis, a consultant maxillofacial and oral surgeon at Northwick Park Hospital.

He designed dental braces to rearrange her jaw and she underwent the first of two operations in 2015.

A second three-and-a-half-hour operation, which involved breaking and resetting her upper and lower jaw, was carried out in October last year.

Mr Heliotis said he was “delighted” that Ms Katsaitis’ self-esteem had risen since the operation.

He said: “That is the reason I do it. It’s exceptionally pleasing to see it go well.”