Abstract
Background: Non-union maxilla is one of the complications after Le Fort Ⅰ osteotomy. Since we experienced a case of non-union maxilla in the past, autogenous bone graft has been used in the gap between the maxillary osteotomized segments in all cases. The aim of this study was to study bone healing using bone graft in the maxillary bone gap between osteotomized segments resulting from Le Fort I osteotomy.
Materials and methods: Fifty out of 120 patients who underwent Le Fort I osteotomy and bilateral sagittal splitting osteotomy simultaneously in our hospital from 2014 to 2018 were classified into the bone graft group and the control group （non-graft group） in this study. Exclusion criteria were as follows: facial asymmetry, maxillary inferior reposition, and posterior movement. Union or non-union after the Le Fort Ⅰ osteotomy was evaluated by CT images taken a year after the surgery. Each site with and without the bone healing was scored as 1 and 0, respectively. This score system was carried out bilaterally at the aperture piriformis margin, maxillary anterior wall and zygomatic buttress. Thus, the score was counted from 0 to 6 in each patient as total score 6. The 50 patients were divided into three groups depending on the amount of maxillary movement: 0-3mm, 3-5mm, and more than 5mm, and were compared between the bone graft group and the control group.
Results: Regardless of the amount of maxillary movement, the scores of the bone graft group significantly increased compared to the control group.
Conclusion: This finding suggests that bone graft can promote bone healing in the case of maxillary bone gap resulting from Le Fort Ⅰ osteotomy.
