Abstract
An alveolar bone graft, followed by the insertion of threaded titanium endosseous (Brånemark System) implants, was performed in two patients with cleft lip and palate.
One patient, with bilateral cleft lip and palate, underwent an iliac bone graft after orthodontic treatment. An oronasal fistula was simultaneously closed by bilateral labial flaps and a tongue flap. Brånemark System implants were placed for treatment of congenital missing lateral incisors, 17 months after the grafting. The other patient, with unilateral cleft lip and alveolus, underwent a chin bone graft. Although necrotic bone resulting from exposure of the palatal side of the grafted bone was removed, most of the grafted bone survived. Six months later, occlusal reconstruction using Brånemark System implants was performed. The postoperative course was uneventful in both cases. Moreover, these patients were satisfied with both esthetic and functional results, which improved the patient's QOL.
These results indicate that endosseous implants combined with bone grafting are more reliable than conventional procedures for occlusal reconstruction in patients with alveolar cleft.
