Objective: The present study aimed to determine the structure and morphology of the maxilla in patients with cleft lip and palate to ensure safe Le Fort I osteotomy.
Patients: A total of 34 sides of 17 patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate (nonsyndromic cases) were included in this study. The control group included 10 sides of 5 patients who exhibited skeletal mandibular protrusion without malformation.
Methods: Finite element analysis was performed to examine the distribution of occlusal force over the maxilla, and continuous 3-dimensional measurement was performed at the sites of stress concentration.
Results: In patients with cleft lip and palate, bones at the lateral border of the piriform aperture and the anterior wall of the maxillary sinus were significantly thicker than those in controls ( P < .05). Furthermore, the attachment of the pterygomaxillary junction was wider and thicker ( P < .05), and the anterior distance to the descending palatine artery was shorter ( P < .01) in patients with cleft lip and palate than in controls. Our results further indicated that alveolar bone grafting may significantly influence bone thickness and the attachment state of the pterygomaxillary junction.
Conclusions: Our results suggest that the complications of LFI can be reduced in patients with cleft lip and palate by ensuring proper understanding of each patient's maxillary anatomy and bone thickness, as well as the location of the descending palatine artery and the attachment state of the pterygomaxillary junction.
Keywords: craniofacial morphology; maxilla; orthognathic surgery.