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Objectives: In cleft palate patients, the soft palate is commonly closed using straight-line palatoplasty, Z-palatoplasty, or palatoplasty with buccal flaps. Currently, it is unknown which surgical technique is superior regarding speech outcomes. The aim of this review is to study the incidence of speech correcting surgery (SCS) per soft palatoplasty technique and to identify variables which are associated with this outcome., Materials and Methods: A systematic literature search was carried out according to the PRISMA guidelines. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were applied to focus on the incidence of SCS after soft palatoplasty. Additional variables like surgical modification, cleft morphology, syndrome, age at palatoplasty, fistula and assessment of velopharyngeal function were reported. A modified New-Ottawa Scale (NOS) was used for quality appraisal. Pooled estimates from the meta-analysis were calculated using a random-effects model., Results: One thousand twenty-nine studies were found of which 54 were included in the analysis. The pooled estimate proportion of SCS after straight-line palatoplasty was 19% (95% CI 15-24), after Z-palatoplasty 6% (95% CI 4-9), and after palatoplasty with buccal flaps 7% (95% CI 4-11)., Conclusions: A lower SCS rate was found in patients receiving Z-palatoplasty when compared to straight-line palatoplasty. We propose a minimum set of outcome parameters which ideally should be included in future studies regarding speech outcomes after cleft palate repair., Clinical Relevance: Current literature reports highly heterogenous data regarding cleft palate repair. Our recommended set of parameters may address this inconsistency and could make intercenter comparison possible and of better quality., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Ischemia is a major limiting factor in Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation (VCA) as irreversible muscular injury can occur after as early as 4-6 hours of static cold storage (SCS). Organ preservation technologies have led to the development of storage protocols extending rat liver ex vivo preservation up to 4 days. Development of such a protocol for VCAs has the added challenge of inherent ice nucleating factors of the graft, therefore this study focused on developing a robust protocol for VCA supercooling. Rodent partial hindlimbs underwent subnormothermic machine perfusion (SNMP) with several loading solutions, followed by cryoprotective agent (CPA) cocktail developed for VCAs. Storage occurred in suspended animation for 24h and VCAs were recovered using SNMP with modified Steen. This study shows a robust VCA supercooling preservation protocol in a rodent model. Further optimization is expected to allow for its application in a transplantation model, which would be a breakthrough in the field of VCA preservation., Competing Interests: COMPETING INTEREST STATEMENT Y.B., A.G.L., C.L.C. and K.U. have patent applications relevant to this field. K.U. has financial interests in and serve on the Scientific Advisory Board for Sylvatica Biotech Inc., a private company developing high subzero organ preservation technologies. Competing interests for Massachusetts General Hospital investigators are managed by Mass General in accordance with their conflict-of-interest policies. I.F.R., P.T., E.C.T., A.T.D., C.P., M.G., A.M.M. and J.H.C. have no competing interests.

Objectives: To facilitate the best approach during cleft palate surgery, children are positioned with hyperextension of the neck. Extensive head extension may induce intraoperative cerebral ischemia if collateral flow is insufficient. To evaluate and monitor the effect of cerebral blood flow on cerebral tissue oxygenation, near-infrared spectroscopy has proved to be a valuable method. The aim of this study was to evaluate and quantify whether hyperextension affects the cerebral tissue oxygenation in children during cleft palate surgery., Materials and Methods: This prospective study included children (ASA 1 and 2) under the age of 3 years old who underwent cleft palate repair at the Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, in The Netherlands. Data were collected for date of birth, cleft type, date of cleft repair, and physiological parameters (MAP, saturation, heart rate, expiratory CO 2 and O 2 , temperature, and cerebral blood oxygenation) during surgery. The cerebral blood oxygenation was measured with NIRS., Results: Thirty-four children were included in this study. The majority of the population was male (61.8%, n = 21). The mixed model analyses showed a significant drop at time of Rose position of - 4.25 (69-74 95% CI; p < 0.001) and - 4.39 (69-74 95% CI; p < 0.001). Postoperatively, none of the children displayed any neurological disturbance., Conclusion: This study suggests that hyperextension of the head during cleft palate surgery leads to a significant decrease in cerebral oxygenation. Severe cerebral desaturation events during surgery were uncommon and do not seem to be of clinical relevance in ASA 1 and 2 children., Clinical Relevance: There was a significant drop in cerebral oxygenation after positioning however it is not clear whether this drop is truly significant physiologically in ASA 1 and 2 patients.

Objective: To evaluate factors affecting incidence of complications after secondary alveolar bone grafting with premaxillary osteotomy (SABG + PO) in children with complete bilateral cleft of lip and palate (BCLP)., Materials and Methods: Data were collected from children with BCLP treated with SABG + PO from 2004 to 2014 at our institute. Preoperative parameters included age, donor site, race, gingival health, bone quality around cleft-related teeth, premaxilla position, graft timing, presence of canines in the cleft, and presence of deciduous teeth around the cleft area. Logistic regression and the chi-squared test were used to assess correlations and the incidence of complications., Results: In the 64 patients, a significant correlation was found between complication rate and timing of bone grafting with respect to early versus late SABG + PO (p = 0.041), age > 12 years (p = 0.011; odds ratio (OR) 5.9; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.49-23.93), malposition of the premaxilla (p = 0.042; OR 3.3; 95% CI 1.04-10.13), and preoperative bone quality around cleft-related teeth (p = 0.005; OR 5.3; 95% CI 1.6-17.2)., Conclusions: The timing of SABG + PO is essential, as early SABG + PO is associated with fewer complications. A malpositioned premaxilla and poor bone quality around cleft-related teeth are associated with more complications. Therefore, preoperative orthodontic repositioning of the malpositioned premaxilla before SABG + PO should be considered., Clinical Relevance: Analysis of treatment protocols and complications for BCLP patients underscores that proper timing of SABG + PO and correct premaxilla repositioning help reduce complications.

Objectives: Throat packs are commonly used to prevent ingestion or aspiration of blood and other debris during cleft lip/palate surgery. However, dislodgement or (partial) retainment after extubation could have serious consequences. The aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of omitting pharyngeal packing during cleft lip/palate surgery on the incidence of early postoperative complications in children., Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was performed on all children who underwent cleft lip/palate surgery at the Wilhelmina Children's Hospital. This study compared the period January 2010 through December 2012 when pharyngeal packing was applied according to local protocol (group A) with the period January 2013 till December 2015 when pharyngeal packing was no longer applied after removal from the protocol (group B). Data were collected for sex, age at operation, cleft lip/palate type, type of repair, lateral incisions, length of hospital stay, and complications in the first 6 weeks after surgery. Early complications included wound dehiscence, postoperative bleeding, infection, fever, upper respiratory tract infection (URTI), and lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI)., Results: This study included 489 cleft lip/palate operations (group A n = 246, group B n = 243). A total of 39 (15.9%) early complications were recorded in group A and a total of 40 (16.5%) in group B. There were no significant differences (P = 0.902) in complications between the two groups; however, there was a significant difference (P < 0.001) in length of hospital stay between the two groups (group A 3.6 days vs group B 3.2 days)., Conclusion: Omitting routine placement of throat packs in cleft lip/palate surgery was not associated with an increased early postoperative complication rate. Therefore, the traditional, routine placement of a throat pack during cleft lip/palate surgery can be questioned., Clinical Relevance: The traditional, routine placement of a throat pack during cleft lip/palate surgery can be questioned.

Background: Overhanging skin in postbariatric patients leads to a negative body image. In patients with obesity, negative body image is related to more depressive symptoms and a higher weight. This relationship might also be important in postbariatric patients, because improvement of body image via body contouring surgery (BCS) could lead to better weight loss results., Objectives: To evaluate the relationship between body image, depressive symptoms, and weight loss in a postbariatric population, focusing on desire for BCS., Setting: Outpatient clinic., Methods: One thousand twenty-four primary bariatric surgery patients were contacted, and 590 patients agreed to participate and filled in online questionnaires regarding body image (Body Shape Questionnaire and Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire-Appearance Scales) and depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II). Differences between patients who had BCS, patients who desired BCS, and patients who did not desire BCS were studied. The mediating role of body image in the association between percentage total weight loss and depressive symptoms was assessed via a 2-mediator model., Results: There was a desire for BCS in 368 patients (62.4%); these patients had significantly lower scores on appearance evaluation and body image satisfaction scales and showed more depressive symptoms. Patients without a desire (n = 157, 26.6%) had lowest rates of depressive symptoms and a more positive body image. Sixty-five patients (11.0%) had undergone BCS. In the patients who desired BCS, percentage total weight loss was negatively affected by depressive symptoms via appearance evaluation and body-area satisfaction., Conclusions: There are striking differences regarding body image satisfaction and depressive symptoms when comparing postbariatric patients and without desire for BCS. Body image satisfaction is associated with less depressive symptoms in all postbariatric patients. In patients who desired BCS, body image is one of the mediators of the relationship between percentage total weight loss and depressive symptoms. Therefore, body image should be taken seriously and be part of outcome assessment in postbariatric patients., (Copyright © 2018 American Society for Bariatric Surgery. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To develop a reliable and easy-to-use method to assess the nasolabial appearance of 18-year-old patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate (CLP)., Design: Retrospective analysis of nasolabial aesthetics using a 5-point ordinal scale and newly developed photographic reference scale: the Cleft Aesthetic Rating Scale (CARS). Three cleft surgeons and 20 medical students scored the nasolabial appearance on standardized frontal photographs., Setting: VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam., Patients: Inclusion criteria: 18-year-old patients, unilateral cleft lip and palate, available photograph of the frontal view., Exclusion Criteria: history of facial trauma, congenital syndromes affecting facial appearance. Eighty photographs were available for scoring., Main Outcome Measures: The interobserver and intraobserver reliability of the CARS for 18-year-old patients when used by cleft surgeons and medical students., Results: The interobserver reliability for the nose and lip together was 0.64 for the cleft surgeons and 0.61 for the medical students. There was an intraobserver reliability of 0.75 and 0.78 from the surgeons and students, respectively, on the nose and lip together. No significant difference was found between the cleft surgeons and medical students in the way they scored the nose ( P = 0.22) and lip ( P = 0.72)., Conclusions: The Cleft Aesthetic Rating Scale for 18-year-old patients has a substantial overall estimated reliability when the average score is taken from three or more cleft surgeons or medical students assessing the nasolabial aesthetics of CLP patients.

Background: Bariatric surgery for morbid obesity results in massive weight loss and improvement of health and quality of life. A downside of the major weight loss is the excess of overstretched skin, which may influence the patient's quality of life by causing functional and aesthetic problems. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the patient's quality of life long-term after body contouring following bariatric surgery., Methods: Quality of life was measured with the Obesity Psychosocial State Questionnaire in 33 post-bariatric surgery patients 7.2 years (range, 3.2 to 13.3 years) after body contouring surgery. Data were compared with previous assessments 4.1 years (range, 0.7 to 9.2 years) after body contouring surgery of the quality of life at that time and before body contouring surgery., Results: Compared with appraisals of quality of life before body contouring surgery, a significant, mostly moderate to large, sustained improvement of quality of life was observed in post-bariatric surgery patients 7.2 years after body contouring surgery in six of the seven psychosocial domains. A small deterioration occurred between 4.1- and 7.2-year follow-up on two of the seven domains except for the domain efficacy toward eating, which showed a significant improvement. At 7-year follow-up, 18 patients (55 percent) were satisfied with the result of body contouring surgery., Conclusions: This study indicates a sustained quality-of-life improvement in post-bariatric surgery patients after body contouring surgery. This suggests the importance of including reconstructive surgery as a component in the multidisciplinary approach in the surgical treatment of morbid obesity., Clinical Question/level of Evidence: Therapeutic, IV.