Unilateral complete cleft lip and palate: tooth alterations and malocclusion – a case report

Abstract

The lip and palate clefts are congenital malformations which have serious changes as consequence that compromise the esthetics, the speech and the dental positioning regarding the individuals affected. This anomalies occurrence varies according to the sample studied, however, studies in Brazil show a frequency of 37,1%, from which 9,7% are unilateral complete lip and palate cleft in the right side and lip cleft in the left side only . This kind of cleft shows serious problems regarding malocclusion, thus changing functions like breath, phonation, deglutition and nutrition. Because of these different changes, the solution in these cases can be offered as multidiscipline teamwork in rehabilitee processes and the patient’s social reintegration. In the clinical case that will be presented, the patient has received rehabilitee treatment since the first months until the adulthood being the orthodontics treatment achieved from 1982 to 1998 through the orthopedics and orthodontics mechanism based on the Edgewise’s techniques. The purpose of this research is to provide clinical orientation to the professionals of this area, especially to the dentist, mainly in the point of view regarding dental changes and malocclusion, showing the knowledge importance between these different characteristics to the treatment success for lip and palate cleft patients.