Soft-Tissue Characteristics of Operated Unilateral Complete Cleft Lip and Palate Patients in Mixed Dentition

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to provide quantitative information about the facial soft-tissue characteristics of operated unilateral complete cleft lip and palate (UCCLP) children compared with healthy children during mixed dentition. Methods: Lateral cephalometric radiographs of 48 children with UCCLP who had been operated on before the age of 2 years were analyzed and compared with those of a control group of 60 healthy children with the same age, sex, and ethnic characteristics. Results: The children with operated UCCLP differed from the control group by having a more concave profile, flatter nasal tip, more retrognathic basis nasi, shorter upper lip, thicker upper and lower lip, reduced upper-lip projection, and increased lower-lip projection. Conclusions: The facial soft-tissue morphology in operated UCCLP patients differed from normal controls of the same age, sex, and ethnic group. It may be necessary for children with UCCLP operated before 2 years of age to have some preventive treatment.