Abstract
The purpose of this study was to investigate the growth of the nasomaxillary complex and nose in patients with cleft lip or palate or both by measuring the angle between the nasal dorsal line and the auricular attaching line. Subjects were 702 patient with unilateral cleft lip, 30 with unilateral cleft lip and palate, and 19 with bilateral cleft lip or palate or both. Subjects ranged in age from 3 months to adult. The results were as follows :
1) The angle between the nasal dorsal line and the auricular attaching line in case of unilateral cleft lip was higher in female patients older than 14 years but was lower in male patients. This growth pattern is abnormal.
2) In patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate the angle was smaller than in patients with other types of cleft after the age of 15 years. This finding is compatible with results of cephalometric studies of facial growth in cases of unilateral cleft lip and palate.
3) In patients with bilateral clefts the angle was smaller than in patients with unilateral cleft lip but larger than in patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate. This finding is also compatible with results of cephalometric studies too.
The angle between the nasal dorsal line and the auricular attaching line is characteristic of cleft type and indicates the pattern of facial growth.
The angle between the auricular attaching line and the auricular long axis line was greater than normal in all cleft groups. This angle is characteristic of the morphology of cleft patients' ear.
