2006 Volume 31 Issue 1 Pages 15-22
A newly developed palatal plate with a nasal stent was used in presurgical orthodontic treatment for neonates with cleft palate to correct the cleft nose deformity. The effect of the device was analyzed quantitatively.
18 neonates were analyzed.10 patients were treated using palatal plates with a nasal stent, and 8 using palatal plates without a nasal stent.
The palatal plate was made of acrylic resin or thermoplastic material, and the nasal stent was added by implanting a Co-Cr wire (diameter 0.9 mm) in the plate. The resin bulb was attached to the other edge of the wire.
The bulb and stent portion were bent to extend the alar nasi of the cleft side antero-superiorly and medially. Plaster was applied to decrease the cleft lip gap.
Measurement using digital photographs taken before and after the orthodontic treatment was carried out to analyze the asymmetry of the external nose, the degree of the shifted columella, and the change of “ nasal tip / ala nasi” ratio.
The results showed significant improvement of the asymmetry of the external nose and the shifted columella in the patients using a nasal stent. Concerning the change of the nasal tip / ala nasi, no significant difference was observed between the two groups.
These results suggested that the palatal plate with a nasal stent is useful to correct the nasal deformity, and thus can play an important role in presurgical orthodontic treatment.
