| |
|
This is the age when the children are concerned about their outward appearance and this is the age to perform the final and corrective cosmetic surgeries for the cleft individual. The lip, palate and the teeth are taken care of by the cleft-care team in the early years. But the cleft in the upper jaw decreases the growth potential of the jaws. As a result, the upper jaw remains small while the whole face grows. Depending upon the degree of cleft and the nature of the primary repair done, the severity of the defect can range from slight depression to a dish face appearance.
Secondary bone corrections must always precede soft tissue corrections. A good infrastructure is the primary need. The upper jaw can be surgically cut and brought forward, or the lower jaw can be shortened according to the upper jaw size to improve the profile of the cleft teen. |
| |
|
But if the discrepancy between the upper and the lower jaws is more, simple jaw surgery cannot provide stable, optimum results. The only other alternative is Distraction Osteogenesis. Due to complexity of the treatment planning and the dexterity required in execution of the same, very few surgeons have mastered it, but the technique provides very fine results. Here the maxilla is cut and a screw like device is fitted between the cut ends. The rotation of the screw brings about gradual separation of the cut ends. The purpose of the distraction device is to gradually lengthen the space between the two cut ends so that new bone is formed to fill in the gap. |
| |
|
Further soft tissue corrective surgery may be carried out after the bone surgery.
Cleft nose, especially a unilateral one, is one of the most difficult deformities to correct. Owing to this, many surgeons deter secondary correction of cleft nose. To achieve mastery and perfection in this requires a lot of experience and expertise.
At the Balaji Cleft Center, the surgeon, Prof. Dr. S. M. Balaji, has indeed mastered the technique and the surgical outcomes speak volumes about the deftness of this surgeon. He has performed more than twenty five thousand surgeries till date and is active in research and scientific advancement. His surgical techniques have been published in several International Research Journals. His research on cleft nose surgery has received the “the best research paper” award at the “International Conference on Cleft Lip and Palate” that was held in Zurich. Switzerland, and at the “International Conference of Maxillofacial Surgeons,” held at Surabaya, Indonesia. He recently bagged the “Gold Medal” for the best scientific presentation at the Asian Conference of the Maxillofacial Surgeons for his research presentation on Secondary Corrections in Cleft.
He has also been honored by the Govt. of Tamilnadu as the “Scientist of the Year, 2002.” He has also been awarded “The Best Scientific Author” award for his book on Headaches. An official consultant to the Governments of Maldives, Mauritius, Seychelles and the Andaman, he heads his cleft care team at The Balaji Cleft Center, Chennai.
|
