Preliminary report of two-stage secondary alveolar bone grafting for patients with bilateral cleft lip and palate

Objective: To overcome the difficulties of one-stage secondary alveolar bone grafting for patients with bilateral cleft lip and palate (BCLP) who have a broad alveolar cleft, the value of two-stage alveolar bone grafting was examined. Patients: Three patients (2 girls and 1 boy) with BCLP were treated by two-stage alveolar bone grafting. The procedure consisted of a first-stage surgery (mean age 8 year 6 months-7.8 months), which consisted of alveolar bone grafting for one side of the BCLP, and second-stage surgery for the contralateral side several months later. For the postoperative assessment, radiographs of the operated site were examined. Results: The average amount of implanted bone per operation and per patient was 6.8-1.1 g and 13.7 - 1.0 g, respectively. Postoperative clinical and radiographic examinations revealed that an appreciable alveolar bone ridge had formed, and there were no major complications. Conclusions: Two-stage alveolar bone grafting, which makes it possible to reduce the amount of implanted bone, could be an optional surgical procedure for patients with BCLP and a broad alveolar cleft.