Rhinoplasty in the cleft lip patient

Several important factors to consider in the surgical repair of the cleft lip nose are described: the importance of an adequate lip closure technique to ensure symmetry can prevent a more conspicuous deformity of the nose during growth, the consequences of secondary rhinoplasty in the growing nose in which the surgeon has to weigh the possible growth inhibition due to scar tissue against the possible functional and esthetic improvement, a systematic surgical approach in which the operative procedure is divided into different steps, and the use of autogenous graft material. In the evaluation of 52 cleft lip patients (5 bilateral clefts, 47 complete unilateral clefts) who had undergone a secondary rhinoplasty, two specific postoperative problems were encountered: slight to moderate recurrence of the caudal septal deviation (in unilateral clefts) and restenosis of the nasal vestibule at the cleft side. Adjustment of the surgical technique and the use of a custom-made vestibulum device diminished these sequellae considerably.