Prosthetic rehabilitation of patients with cleft lip and palate

Abstract

Orofacial anomalies are common of which the most common orofacial deformity is cleft lip and palate (CLP), which affects one out of every 700–1000 infants globally. The management team should provide a thorough diagnosis, treatment plan, and follow-up. A cleft team often includes orthodontists, maxillofacial surgeons, plastic surgeons, pediatric dentists, prosthodontists, speech therapists, audiologists, psychologists, and pediatricians. Prosthetic rehabilitation of the CLP patients starts right from birth to adulthood. It varies from the naso alveolar molding of cleft segments before surgery and expansion of maxillary arch before the secondary alveolar bone grafting to the placement of fixed partial dentures or removable partial dentures for the establishment of better esthetics. A soft-tissue bulb prosthesis can also be given to children with velopharyngeal insufficiency to improve their speech. This article elucidates prosthetic rehabilitation techniques and modalities for patients with CLP.

Keywords

• cleft lip and palate
• fixed partial dentures
• maxillary expansion
• naso alveolar molding
• prosthetic rehabilitation
• speech bulb prosthesis