Evaluation of dental arch relationship of patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate

Abstract

Background: Several classifications have previously been described to assess dental arch relationships of cleft patients and therefore the surgical outcome. The most commonly used method for evaluation of surgical outcome is Goslon Yardstick. Another scoring system that can be used is the modified Huddart/Bodenham scoring system. Aim: The objective of this study was to evaluate the dental arch relationships of subjects with repaired unilateral and cleft lip and palate who come at an orthodontic center by means of Goslon and modified Huddart/Bodenham scoring system and to find a correlation between the two systems. Methodology: The study models of 16 patients (9 males, 7 females) with an average age of 14.2 years (range 11–23 years) were evaluated for arch constriction by four observers which included two orthodontists and two postgraduate students. Results: The analysis of dental arch relationship using Goslon Yardstick revealed that 63% of patients ranked between Goslon 3 and 5. The mean modified Huddart/Bodenham score was −16.13. Conclusion: The study revealed that modified Huddart/Bodenham scoring system provided better interobserver agreement than Goslon Yardstick by untrained observers. There was a good inverse correlation between two scoring systems.