Abstract

Diagnostic radiology is essential in the planning of multidisciplinary treatment for cleft defects. The aim of this study is to present the merits of performing computed tomography in the case of a patient with a suspected cleft defect on the left side and its spontaneous healing in intrauterine life. This paper describes the case of a patient with a visible scar suggesting a left-sided cleft lip. Anamnestic examination ruled out any surgical correction, although the scar was already evident at birth. Intraoral examinations revealed hypodontia of a lateral incisor on the right side and hyperdontia of the lateral incisors on the left side, which is a characteristic symptom of a cleft in the primary palate. The dental status was confirmed by means of an orthopantomogram, which did not show any fissure within the bone structures. Only dental CT imaging revealed an alveolar cleft on the left side. In particular cases of congenital craniofacial defects it is advisable to broaden the scope of diagnostic radiography to include three-dimensional imaging of the maxillary bone structure. In world literature there are isolated clinical reports relating to a spontaneous healing of cleft defects in utero, none of which contained any information on imaging examinations that could document the actual picture of the craniofacial changes accompanying the facial scar.

Authors and Affiliations