Current Research

In this large US study of over 1600 children treated for a single fused skull suture, doctors tracked which long-term complications occurred years after surgery. The type of suture affected made a difference: children with sagittal synostosis more often developed elevated pressure inside the skull, those with unicoronal synostosis more often had eye-related problems, and those with lambdoid synostosis more often showed a Chiari malformation (a downward shift of part of the brain). This suggests that follow-up care should be tailored to the specific suture involved, with regular check-ups continuing well beyond the first surgery.

Robin sequence causes a small lower jaw and breathing difficulties in newborns; two common treatments are a removable orthodontic plate that gently guides jaw growth, or surgery that lengthens the jaw with a distraction device. This US study compared 13 infants treated with the plate to 9 infants treated surgically and found the plate group left hospital sooner and had substantially lower hospital charges, mainly because they needed less intensive care and no operating room time. The findings can support families and care teams weighing a nonsurgical first approach where it is medically appropriate.

Treacher Collins syndrome affects how the cheekbones, jaw, and ears develop and is caused by changes in a small number of known genes. Researchers examined eleven affected people from three Mexican families and confirmed the specific genetic changes responsible in each family, using detailed DNA sequencing. This is valuable because most published genetic data on Treacher Collins syndrome comes from European or North American populations, so broadening the picture helps ensure genetic counseling and testing are accurate for families from different backgrounds worldwide.

Velopharyngeal insufficiency means the soft palate cannot close off the nose properly during speech, causing a nasal-sounding voice; the double-opposing Z-plasty is one surgical technique to correct milder forms. This Taiwanese center compared 114 patients treated over 17 years and found that refining the technique - first by lengthening the soft palate, then by adding a small fat graft - steadily improved success rates from 80% to a perfect 100% in the most recent group, without causing breathing or sleep problems. For families facing this type of surgery, it shows that surgical technique continues to evolve toward better speech outcomes with fewer complications.

Some people with a repaired cleft palate later need surgery to move the upper jaw forward (LeFort I osteotomy) to correct a sunken midface, but this can sometimes affect how well the soft palate seals off the nose during speech. This small US study followed 21 patients, some who had never had VPI surgery and some who already had a pharyngeal flap, tracking changes in nasal-sounding speech and quality of life after the jaw surgery. The results help surgical and speech teams anticipate and discuss the risk of speech changes when planning jaw-advancement surgery, so families can be prepared and speech therapy can be arranged if needed.

After a bone graft closes the gap in the jaw of a person with a cleft, a dental implant can later replace a missing tooth in that area. This review pooled results from 18 studies covering over 1500 implants and found that survival rates have steadily improved over time, now averaging around 94% in recent research - comparable to implants placed in jaws without a cleft. Most failures happened early, in the first months, and were linked to not enough bone or insufficient stability at placement, which points to the importance of careful timing and technique.

People born with cleft lip and/or palate often have a harder time keeping their teeth and gums healthy, partly because of the anatomy involved and the many treatments they undergo. This guidance article for general dentists highlights that registering with a dental practice early, staying in close contact with the specialist cleft team, and following a tailored prevention plan for cavities and gum health can meaningfully reduce these largely preventable problems. It is a reminder for families that the family or local dentist remains an important part of the care team, alongside the specialist cleft clinic.

When a child with a repaired cleft palate has trouble speaking clearly, it is not always obvious whether the problem lies in the anatomy of the palate (a structural issue) or in learned speech habits (a functional issue) - yet the two need very different treatments. This review explains how a speech-language pathologist assesses the speech pattern and works together with the surgical team to figure out the cause: structural problems like velopharyngeal insufficiency may need surgery or a palatal device, while functional patterns like velopharyngeal mislearning respond to targeted speech therapy alone. For families, this underscores why an accurate diagnosis by the combined surgical and speech team matters before deciding on surgery versus therapy.

Cleft palate only (CPO), where the palate is affected but not the lip, is often thought to leave facial appearance relatively unaffected compared to a combined lip-and-palate cleft. This study compared detailed x-ray measurements of the nose and midface in 59 young adults with CPO to 59 people without a cleft and found consistent, measurable differences: a flatter nose bridge, shorter nose, and flatter midface profile in the CPO group. This helps explain subtle facial appearance differences some patients notice even without a lip scar, and can inform orthodontic and surgical planning for this group.

This large US study compared over 56,000 children and adults with cleft lip and/or palate to people without a cleft and found significantly higher rates of depression, anxiety, ADHD, and disruptive behavior disorders in the cleft group, along with more frequent prescriptions for related medications. The risk was even higher in children who also had hearing problems such as fluid in the middle ear, which are common with cleft palate. The findings support routinely screening for mental health and behavioral concerns as part of standard cleft team follow-up, not just tracking physical and speech outcomes.