Abstract
A clinico-statistical investigation was carried out with cleft lip and/or palate patients in the Department of Orthodontics, Tokushima University Hospital, during the 12 years from April 1994 to March 2006.
1. The number of cleft lip and/or palate patients was 201, accounting for 7.4% of all orthodontic patients during the 12 years. The patients were 110 males and 91 females with a male to female ratio of 1: 0.83.
2. The peak age of the first visit was 0 years (41.4%) and 7-9 years old (21.4%). As for Hellman's dental developmental stage, the percentages of stage I and MB patients were 54.2% and 15.4%, respectively.
3. The distribution of cleft type was as follows: cleft lip and palate 60.2%, cleft lip and alveolus 21.4%, cleft palate 14.9%, and cleft lip 3.0%. The unilateral cleft lip was more frequently seen on the left side than on the right side, and in males than in females. Cleft palate was more abundant in females than in males.
4. As for the resident distribution, patients from the Shikoku area were 96.0%, breaking down into 71.1% from Tokushima prefecture and 16.9% from Kagawa prefecture.
5.68.6% of patients were referred from other departments in Tokushima University Hospital.
6. By classification of crossbite, cases of type 4 (anterior crossbite) were most frequent, being 39.6%.
