title: Clinical application of cultured oral epithelium for palatal wounds after palatoplasty: a preliminary report.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Mucoperiosteal defects of the hard palate after palatoplasty scar causing scar contraction, leading to poor growth of the maxilla. The promotion of wound healing in these cases through cultured epithelial allografting has been reported. Cultured epithelial allografting was done using allogeneic cultured cells, in the hope of improving growth of maxilla.
  
  
  METHODS
  Clefts of the soft and hard palate (seven patients), and a cleft of the soft palate (two patients) were present. Average patient age was 1 year 4 months. Palatoplasty was done by a conventional push-back operation. Oral epithelial cells from healthy adults were cultured using 3T3 cells as the feeder layer. After 3 weeks, cultured oral mucosal epithelium was grafted on a raw surface following palatoplasty.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The result was compared in two patients who had undergone push-back operation only. In all patients, the grafted areas underwent re-epithelialization after about 1 week and did not exhibit any clinical signs of graft rejection. Grafted areas healed completely after 2-3 weeks in all cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cultured epithelial allografts serve as a temporary biological dressing, and accelerate epithelialization and wound healing. Allografting by cultured oral epithelium has proved to be a very useful therapeutic modality in palatoplasty, as well as effective augmentation materials in cases of oral mucosal defects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral Surgery, Nagoya University School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sumi
authors.forename: K I
authors.initials: KI
authors.lastname: Hata
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sawaki
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mizuno
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ueda
mesh_terms: D016475:3T3 Cells; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D002971:Cleft Lip / Q000601:surgery; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000601:surgery*; D004847:Epithelial Cells; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008445:Maxillofacial Development; D051379:Mice; D019647:Oral Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects; D010159:Palate / Q000601:surgery*; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D014945:Wound Healing