Stability of Le Fort III advancement surgery in children with Crouzon's, Apert's, and Pfeiffer's syndromes.

The records of 19 children who had undergone Le Fort III advancement surgery were used to assess the stability of the midfacial segment following surgery. Cephalometric radiographs of each individual were analyzed longitudinally. The average forward movement of the maxilla at the time of surgery was 12.4 mm. The average amount of relapse for the group was 9.4 percent in the horizontal plane of space and 5.5 percent in the vertical plane of space. The data obtained from this sample indicate that the Le Fort III advancement is a relatively stable procedure. The amount of relapse or stability that occurs following Le Fort III advancement is related to rigid stabilization of the midfacial segment with buttressing bone grafts, transosteotomy wiring, and intermaxillary fixation or bone plating during the postoperative healing phase.