Management of cleft lip and nose defects: one or more operations?

Forty-seven patients with cleft lips and noses were operated on between 1981 and 1986 and the subsequent defects were evaluated at least two years after corrective operations. Of thirty-four unilateral deformities, 19 patients had only one operation, with satisfactory results in 16 patients and poor results in a further three. Ten patients had two operations, and an additional five patients had three and more. Of 10 patients with bilateral defects, four had two operations, and four had at least three. In addition, three children who were operated on between the ages of 8 and 10 showed normal growth of all the affected structures despite extensive mobilisation of the soft tissues.