Cleft lip and palate is the most common cranio-facial defect with patients displaying unfavorable growth pattern of the cranio-facial complex. When such a deficiency in growing subjects, is left untreated, can lead to severe functional, aesthetic, breathing and psychological problems. To treat patients with cleft lip and palate, early orthopedic correction is considered to be advantageous. This can be applied through a tooth-anchored protraction facemask, bone-anchored protraction facemask or even the application of direct force via intra-oral inter-maxillary elastics anchored in mini-plates between the maxilla and the mandible.

maxillary protraction, cleft lip, cleft palate, class iii malocclusion, bone anchored, facemask