Orthopaeddontic Cleft Treatment: Advantages and Disadvantages

Early orthodontic intervention in paediatric patient with a cleft anomaly was first documented in 1956, focussing on dental and dentoalveolar-palatal transverse alignment. Since then, various institutions have adopted varying approaches to orthodontic treatment protocols. Orthopaeddontic treatment represents a progressive and structured treatment approach in paediatrics, specifically designed for young children born with oro-facial cleft anomalies, such as cleft lip-alveolus, cleft lip-alveolus-palate and an isolated hard and soft palate clefts, which includes the Pierre Robin sequence. This advance treatment modality integrates five core elements: optimal timing during the paediatric growth spurt, a non-extraction approach, dento-orthopaeddontic intervention, an orthognathic-orthopaeddontic treatment and structured psychological support. Very specific appliances are implemented to stimulate growth in avoidance of future pre- and post-adolescent extensive orthodontic treatments and also lessen future orthognathic surgery, which is employed throughout the orthopaeddontic growth period. The aim is to treat and deal all the different interventions, with its various advantages and disadvantages, in the young paediatric child during the age group 5 to 11 years ±1 year. These advantages and disadvantages, as an valuable approach for the maximum effect are discussed in this publication. This is in particular essential in that the standard straight, hard and direct approaches have been softened with a specific gentler approach and resorted to the help of affectionate, well-trained small animals. The detailed benefits of early treatment, as an orthopaeddontic approaches, are discussed minutely in this review publication.