ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Alveolar bone grafting is known to reduce nasal asymmetry by supporting a defective alar baseand a sunken nostril. However, there are no studies on details of changes in the upper lip with appropriatemeasurements.OBJECTIVE: To measure the change in the upper lip height and nostril sill after alveolar bone grafting.METHODS: Forty-six congenital unilateral cleft lip and alveolus (UCLA) patients (mean age 9.85 years). The patients underwent alveolar bone grafting with autogenous iliac bone grafts. The average bone graft volume was 2.98 cm3.Photographs of the frontal, lateral and basal views were obtained using standardized photographic techniques. The fixedposition points on the patients' faces were measured. Preoperative and postoperative upper lip height and projection, theproportion indexes of the nostril sill were compared.RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The 6-month follow-up results showed that the height of the upper lip was increased,but no significant difference was found. The projection of the upper lip was more prominent, but there was not statisticallysignificant difference bbetween pre- and post-operation. The nostril sill was significantly elevated in three of four distanceitems. In conclusion, the height of the upper lip is elongated and the nostril sill is elevated after alveolar bone grafting inUCLA patients.