Effect of Veau Class on Levator Veli Palatini Muscle Composition

To examine levator veli palatini muscle composition in patients with nonsyndromic cleft palate and investigate the impact of Veau class.

Prospective cohort study.

Tertiary care academic hospital.

Thirteen patients with nonsyndromic cleft palate were recruited.

During primary palatoplasty, a sample of levator veli palatini muscle was excised and prepared for histological analysis.

Fat and collagen content were determined utilizing Oil Red and Sirius red stains, respectively, while muscle fiber cross-sectional areas were calculated from H&E-stained samples, with analysis using histomorphometric methods. Immunofluorescent staining of myosin heavy chain isoforms was performed.

Patients underwent repair at 10.8 months of age (interquartile range [IQR] 10.2-12.9). Fat content of the levator veli palatini muscle was low in both groups, ranging from 0% to 5.2%. Collagen content ranged from 8.5% to 39.8%; neither fat nor collagen content showed an association with Veau classes. Mean muscle fiber cross-sectional area decreased with increasing Veau class, from 808 µm² (range 692-995 µm²) in Veau II to 651 µm² (range 232-750 µm²) in Veau III (P = .02). There was also a nonsignificant decrease in proportion of type I muscle fibers with increasing Veau class (44.3% [range 31.4%-84.4%] in Veau II vs 35.3% [range 17.4%-61.3%] in Veau III).

Muscle fiber area in levator veli palatini muscles decreases in Veau III clefts in comparison to Veau II. The impact of these differences in velopharyngeal dysfunction requires further analysis of a larger cohort.