Bone regeneration in the hard palate after cleft palate surgery

Background: The purpose of this study was to observe bony healing in the hard palate after cleft palate repair and to discuss the factors affecting it. Methods: Fifty-two patients with repaired cleft palate were examined at least 1 year postoperatively by means of computed tomographic scanning. The incidence of bone regeneration automatically after repair was calculated, and the region of bone formation and the quality of bone tissue were measured according to the scanned image. Results: The formation of a bone bridge was found in 37 of 52 patients (71 percent). The length of regenerated bone tissue (in the anteroposterior direction) ranged from 2 to 20 mm, with an average length of 8.3 mm. The male-to-female ratio of the patients who had a bone bridge was 1:1. There was no obvious difference between the two different cleft types. Considering the relationship of age at operation and bone formation, the most popular age at which bone bridging occurred was 4 to 7 years, and the location in the hard palate with the highest percentage of bone formation was the area between the premolar and anterior part of the molar. Conclusions: Regenerated bone tissue can occur after palatal repair in cleft palate patients. The age at operation could be an important factor affecting regeneration of bone tissue. The authors were not able to find a significant effect of sex or clinical type of cleft palate based on the sample size in this study.