Velar morphological variants in oral submucous fibrosis: A comparative digital cephalometric study

Soft palate (velar) plays a significant role in various important functions in the head and neck region. Its diverse morphology is implicated in a variety of diseases. Knowledge about the varied morphological pattern of soft palate in oral submucous fibrosis (OSMF) patients can give us a clear understanding about disease progress in the oropharyngeal region for a proper diagnosis and also help the maxillofacial surgeon in successful structural and functional corrections associated with this disorder.

(1) To evaluate the morphological variations of soft palate in OSMF patients using digital lateral cephalogram. (2) To assess the morphological variations of soft palate with respect to the different clinical stages of OSMF patients.

A total number of 300 patients were included in the study (150 participants each in study and control group), evaluated clinically, and subjected for digital lateral cephalogram for evaluating velar morphological variants.

The data were statistically evaluated using SPSS 11.5 software with Student's t-test, Chi-square test, and ANOVA.

Among Group I, 34 participants had Stage I OSMF, 90 participants had Stage II OSMF, and 26 participants had Stage III OSMF. Type I velar was commonly seen in Stage I OSMF, Type VI velar in Stage II OSMF, and Type III velar in Stage III OSMF. There was statistically highly significant decrease in anterior-posterior (AP) length and increase in width of superior-inferior (SI) measurement, as compared to the Group II.

There was diminution in AP length and increase in SI measurement as the OSMF disease progressed.