Is Early Nasal Shaping With a Limited Alar Base Incision Possible in the Repair of Cleft Lips?

The repair of cleft lips has an important place in plastic and reconstructive surgery. In the treatment of these deformities, the aim was to restore the normal lip morphology in the cleft area as well as repairing any coexisting nasal deformities. Various methods are in use for this purpose. One of the most commonly employed surgical methods is Millard repair. However, this method may lead to additional scarring in the alar base on the cleft side subsequent to the incision. In this study, the results obtained from a group who have been applied alar base incisions during the modified Millard repair are compared to a group who have undergone intranasal wide dissections.The patients enrolled in the study were randomized into 2 groups. The first group were applied the modified Millard repair. In the second group, the rotation, advancement, and C-flaps were prepared according to Millard surgical repair technique; however, instead of an alar base and nasofacial groove incision on the cleft side, a nasal and maxillary supraperiosteal wide dissection was made through the incision in the mucosa of the nostril.The intranasal dissection performed during the study was observed to provide the targeted outcome and a more satisfactory cosmetic result through the modified Millard repair. In conclusion, the authors are of the opinion that the limited alar base incision and the wide supraperiosteal dissection performed in patients with cleft lips is an alternative method that can be employed in a wide range of patients.