Nasal Deformity and Acoustic Airway Obstruction Profiles in Unilateral Secondary Cleft Lip Nose Deformity

ABSTRACT

Patients with secondary cleft lip nose deformity usually complain not only aesthetic problems but also functional problems such as nasal obstruction. However, there have been few studies on nasal airway problem in secondary cleft lip nose deformity patients and no reports for the correlation between degree of the deformity and nasal airway obstruction. The authors selected 34 patients with secondary cleft lip nose deformity and measured the degree of morphological deformity by photo analysis and the degree of nasal airway obstruction by VAS score and acoustic rhinometry. Almost all patients complained of more obstructive symptom on the affected side. Functional anatomic structure and volume of the nasal airway examined by acoustic rhinometry showed that narrowest point was located above the nostril and pathological obstruction was more significant in patient group in both side and the area of the narrowest point and the total nasal volume was smaller in patient group. The result that alar contour difference has correlation with total nasal volume but not with objective symptom shows that there may be other factors affecting the nasal obstruction. Therefore the authors conclude that not only the correction of the external morphologic deformity but also the consideration of nasal airway obstruction is essential when performing operation on the secondary cleft lip nose deformity patients.