title: CAD presurgical nasoalveolar molding effects on the maxillary morphology in infants with UCLP.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study evaluated the effectiveness of computer-aided design-nasoalveolar molding (CAD-NAM) on maxillary alveolar morphology in infants with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP).
  
  
  METHODS
  15 infants with UCLP treated by CAD-NAM therapy composed the treatment group, and the control group consisted of 15 infants with non-presurgically treated UCLP. The maxillary morphology was analyzed by Rapidform XOR3 software. Differences in all variables pre- and post-CAD-NAM were discussed.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Significant difference was found in arch length, cleft gap, labial frenum deviation, A-X, A'-X, and alveolus height on both sides pre- and post-CAD-NAM.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study suggests a trend toward morphological improvement in maxillary alveoli of infants with UCLP treated with CAD-NAM. The CAD-NAM effectively reduced the cleft gap, corrected the maxilla midline, and improved the sagittal length of the maxilla. The alveolar height decreased significantly after the treatment, which indicated that the traction force of the appliance may have obstructive effects on the vertical growth of the alveolar bone.
authors.affiliation: Assistant Professor, Department of Orthodontics, Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Stomatology.
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gong
authors.forename: Gang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Shen
mesh_terms: D000539:Alveolar Process / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000254:growth & development; D059925:Anatomic Landmarks; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002971:Cleft Lip / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery*; D017076:Computer-Aided Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008437:Maxilla / Q000002:abnormalities* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery; D009666:Nose / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000254:growth & development; D056948:Orthognathic Surgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods; D010158:Palatal Obturators; D012984:Software