The Influence of Pre-surgical Orthodontic Treatment upon the Surgery of Cleft Lip and Palate

Abstract

Pre-surgical orthodontics has certain minor undesirable influences upon the surgery. These are the slight delay in the primary lip operation and the need for anterior palate repair in the bilateral case. When balanced against the very considerable advantages however there can be few surgeons who would not willingly accept the drawbacks in the interests of achieving a relatively easy definitive lip repair at the primary operation. One wonders whether there is significance in the fact that most of the criticism of pre-surgical orthodontics has come not from surgeons but from orthodontists who are either unable or unwilling to provide this service for their surgical colleagues and through them for their patients.