The upper airways in patients with cleft lip and palate: three-dimensional analysis by means of cone beam computed tomography

• Grant number: 14/13501-0
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Dentistry
• Principal Investigator: Ivy Kiemle Trindade Suedam
• Grantee: Ivy Kiemle Trindade Suedam
• Host Institution: Hospital de Reabilitação de Anomalias Craniofaciais (HRAC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Bauru , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Cleft lip and palate (CLP) is the most prevalent congenital malformation in humans. Primary plastic surgeries, which main objective is to repair the anatomy and the function of the lip and palate, paradoxically, impair maxillary growth and, consequently, impact negatively on the nasal morphophysiology, leading to deformities such as septal deviation and turbinate hypertrophy. These changes reduce the internal nasal dimensions and increase the resistance to respiratory airflow. Assuming that, as in the nasal cavity, pharyngeal volume in CLP individuals is probably reduced, the aim of this study is to evaluate three-dimensionally the pharyngeal airway space of this population by means of cone beam computed tomography. For this, two groups will be evaluated: 1) Control group: 60 CT scans of individuals without CLP (20 with Angle class I oclusion, 20 with class II malocclusion and 20 with class III malocclusion), and 2) Cleft group: 60 CT scans of individuals with unilateral CLP (20 with Angle class I oclusion, 20 with class II malocclusion and 20 with class III malocclusion). The scans will be obtained in the HRAC database, in a maxillofacial surgery clinic in the city of Bauru and at the Craniofacial Center/UNC. It will be assessed retrospectively using Dolphin Imaging 11.0 software and MIMICS software, which are able to reformat the volume (mm3) and determine the minimal cross-sectional areas of the pharynx (mm2). Therefore, it is expected to find reduced values of pharyngeal areas and volumes for CLP patients, as compared to individuals without clefts. It is also expected that subjects with maxilomandibular discrepancies present with reduced pharyngeal space compared to individuals with normal occlusion. (AU)