Tomographic 3D analysis of the nasal cavity of adults with unilateral and bilateral cleft lip and palate

Abstract

Cleft lip and palate (CLP) is the most prevalent birth defect in humans. Surgical closure of the lip and palate, which main objective is to restore form and function, paradoxically, impacts negatively on the craniofacial growth and, consequently, on the nasal morph physiology, leading to deformities such as septal deviation and turbinate’s hypertrophy. These changes reduce the internal nasal dimensions and increase resistance to respiratory airflow. Assuming that the volume of the nasal cavity of this population is probably reduced, the aim of the present study is to evaluate three dimensionally the internal nasal volume of young adults with CLP by means of cone beam computed tomography (CBCT). For this, three groups were evaluated: 1) Control Group (CON): 15 CBCT scans of patients without CLP, 2) Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Group (UCLP): 15 CBCT scans of patients with unilateral CLP, and 3)Bilateral Cleft Lip and Palate Group(BCLP): 15 CBCT of patients with bilateral CLP. The scans will be obtained at HRAC database and a at private oral and maxillofacial surgery service, in the city of Bauru, and will be assessed retrospectively by the Dolphin Imaging 11.8 software. Finally, our hypothesis is that the nasal volumes of young adults with CLP are reduced compared to individuals without clefts.