Radiographic analysis of the midface of a stillborn infant with a unilateral cleft lip and palate

The midface of a full-term stillborn infant with a right complete unilateral cleft lip and palate was studied with plain-film radiography and tomography, xeroradiography, and computerized axial tomography. Gross skeletal and soft-tissue deficiencies on the cleft side were evident as compared to the noncleft side and involved the entire bony maxillary complex and antrum, the orbit, and the nasal pyramid and intranasal structures. The area on the cleft side was 19 percent less than the noncleft side, and the maximal anteroposterior dimension was 16 percent less. The cleft bony palatal shelf was 12.5 mm wide compared to 20 mm on the noncleft side. The findings demonstrate the deficient and abnormal functional matrix inherent in the cleft condition.