Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 19, 2026
Midface Hypoplasia and Cranial Base Morphology in Syndromic Craniosynostosis: A Comparative Analysis Study Using a Predictive Regression Model
Published on: November 4, 2025
Craniofacial morphology in children with van der Woude syndrome and isolated cleft palate
Arja Heliövaara1, Rekina Karhulahti, Jorma Rautio
1Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Center, Department of Plastic Surgery, Helsinki University Central Hospital , Helsinki , Finland.
Objective:
To compare cephalometrically 6-year-old children with van der Woude syndrome and cleft palate (VWS) to children with isolated cleft palate alone (CP).
Design:
A retrospective case-control study.
Patients And Setting:
Forty-four children with VWS were compared to 73 children with CP using lateral cephalograms. The mean age of the children with VWS was 6.6 years (range = 5.9-8.2) and that of the children with CP, 6.2 years (range = 5.7-6.7). Palatal closure had been done at a mean age of 1.4 years (range = 0.8-2.2), mostly with the Veau-Wardill-Killner or the Cronin pushback surgical techniques. The data was collected over a 30-year period.
Main Outcome Measure:
Linear and angular measurements were obtained from lateral cephalograms. A Student's t-test was used in the statistical analysis.
Results:
The craniofacial morphology in children with VWS and CP was similar, but those with VWS had slightly smaller diameters of the lower pharyngeal airway. The maxilla and mandible were well related to each other, although a little retrusive in relation to the cranial base. The soft tissue profile reflected the skeletal relationships, no significant protrusion of the lower lip was noted.
Conclusions:
Six-year-old children with VWS and CP have similar craniofacial morphology.
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