Morphometric Evaluation of Soft Palate in OSMF Patients Using Cephalometrics

Oral submucous fibrosis (OSF) is a chronic disease and a well-recognized potentially malignant condition of the oral cavity characterized by inflammation and a progressive fibrosis of the lamina propria and deeper connective tissues. To study the morphology of soft palate in different stages of OSF on digital lateral cephalogram. To compare the changes in morphology of soft palate in OSF patients with control. The study was conducted from 2017 to 2018 on 217 patients with their age ranging from 17 to 60 years. All patients detailed clinical examination and history was taken and cephalometric evaluation was done. Type I (51.14%) was found to be the most common in OSF group followed by type II (21.86%) and type VI (13.64%). The present study highlighted the variable radiographic appearances of the soft palate on lateral cephalograms with type I as most common morphology. Cephalometric analysis is one of the most commonly accepted techniques for evaluating the soft palate in both normal individuals and in those with cleft lip and palate.