Early bone grafting in complete cleft lip and palate cases following maxillofacial orthopedics. III. A study of the dental occlusion.

The dental occlusion of children born with complete cleft lip and palate was studied in deciduous and mixed dentition. The children were divided in two unilateral groups: one group of 39 children operated on between 1960-1965 without preoperative orthopedics and another group of 46 children operated on between 1965-1972 after preoperative orthopedics ("T-traction"). One group of 19 children with bilateral clefts operated on 1960-1972 after premaxillary retropositioning pressure, if necessary combined with outward rotation of the lateral maxillary segments was also studied. All children were bone grafted with the "four flap" technique. Comparisons were made with cleft children bone grafted with a different surgical method, with non-grafted U.S. cleft children, with cleft children operated on with infant periosteoplasty and with nonclefts. Crossbites were more frequent in clefts bone grafted with a different surgical method. The results of this study corresponded more to those operated on with infant periosteoplasty or to the non-grafted cases. However, all cleft groups differed significantly from nonclefts with a reduced overjet and overbite and narrower and shorter upper dental arches.