Effect of Furlow Palatoplasty for Correction of Submucous Cleft Palate: Cephalometric and Speech Analysis

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to investigate the anatomic and functional changes of submucous cleft palate operated with Furlow palatoplasty. A total of 36 patients with submucous cleft palate underwent Furlow palatoplasty from 1993 to 1998. The mean follow-up period was 5 years 3 months. Midfacial growth was measured using lateral cephalograms in 18 patients, whose age was older than 8 years of age. Speech analyses were performed in 25 patients by the same speech pathologist for the degrees of nasality and articulation. The parameters obtained in the lateral cephalogram were compared with a healthy population in Korea. ANS-PNS was in 61.1% within the clinical normal range for the age group. SNA and SNB were in 55.6% within the normal range. ANB was in 72.2% and Ba-PNS was 50.0% within the range. The postoperative nasality scores of open vowels and round vowels were 24.2% and 25.2%, respectively, which were lower than preoperative scores. The mean articulation accuracy value was 92.9% which was higher than preoperative value. Our results suggest that Furlow palatoplasty is a useful procedure as the initial treatment of the submucous cleft palate and has the advantages in both aspects of speech results and facial growth.