Surgical Planning for Cleft Lip and/or Palate-Induced Moderate-to-Severe Midfacial Hypoplasia

Distraction osteogenesis and conventional bimaxillary orthognathic surgery have been performed for the treatment of midfacial hypoplasia for a long time. However, the effect of these 2 techniques on the maxilla, mandible, and whole-facial profile is significantly different. In this study, we aimed to measure the pre- to post-treatment changes in maxillary prominence, mandible size, and facial length and compare them between these 2 techniques to inform selection of the best technique.

This single-center, retrospective study included 35 patients with a cleft lip and/or palate-induced midfacial hypoplasia; 25 were treated using rigid external distraction osteogenesis and 10 using bimaxillary orthognathic surgery. Three-dimensional measures of changes in facial structure were obtained from reconstructed computed tomography images and used to compare the effects of the 2 techniques.

Satisfactory appearance and occlusion were achieved in all patients. Three-dimensional reconstruction of the craniofacial skeleton revealed significant maxillary advancement (P < 0.001), mandibular (clockwise) rotation (P < 0.001), and increased facial length (P < 0.001) after rigid external distraction osteogenesis and obvious shortening of the mandibular body (P < 0.001) after bimaxillary orthognathic surgery.

Distraction osteogenesis can be selected as the first choice of treatment for cleft lip and/or palate-induced midfacial hypoplasia. A mandibular setback procedure can be performed as a second-stage surgery when severe temporomandibular joint complications develop with distraction osteogenesis. Bimaxillary orthognathic surgery results in an obvious shortening of the mandibular body, which is not a natural change in facial morphology.

Therapeutic III.