Satisfaction survey of secondary rhinoplasty among unilateral cleft lip and palate patients

Secondary rhinoplasty on patients with cleft is a challenging procedure, and the most important criterion for evaluating the surgery success is patient satisfaction even if it's subjective.

To evaluate patient satisfaction following secondary cleft rhinoplasty with a specific assessment for patients with Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate (UCLP).

Our retrospective cross-sectional study is composed of 29 patients with UCLP with a mean age of 23years old, who underwent secondary rhinoplasty between 2010 and 2021 in our department. The survey was conducted postoperatively using a cleft-nose specific custom designed questionnaire based on the Byrne questionnaire, over the phone. This satisfaction questionnaire comprises six questions about physical appearance and one question about functional aspect. Patients were asked to answer "yes" or "no" or to rate from 0 (no improvement) to 10 (perfect result) depending on the question.

Twenty out of 29 people responded to the questionnaire, representing an answer rate of 69%. The average score given by the patient for nasolabial scar improvement was 7.2/10, and the one concerning global improvement was 8.2/10. All patients would be ready to undergo the same procedure again, knowing the final result. A functional improvement concerning breathing or snoring was reported in 45% of cases. All dorsum or tip issues were improved after surgery (P=0,07).

Our results demonstrate high patient satisfaction after cleft rhinoplasty, which encourages the continuation of this surgery. We would recommend the use of this simple questionnaire to allow a more accurate evaluation of patient outcomes.