Duration of presurgical orthodontic treatment in individuals with nonsyndromic oral clefts undergoing orthognathic surgery

Introduction: Evaluating the length of orthodontic-surgical treatment is a key factor to properly inform and guide the patient about the duration of treatment and consequently achieve agreement and adherence to treatment, as well as for health-care institutions that sponsor this type of treatment. Objective: The aim of the present study was to investigate the duration of orthodontic treatment before orthognathic surgery, in patients with nonsyndromic oral clefts, as well as the number of consultations required for that purpose. Materials and Methods: This was an observational, retrospective, descriptive study conducted on data obtained from the patients' medical records. The study analyzed 485 medical records and, after applying the inclusion criteria, the sample included 227 medical records. All data were tabulated in an Excel spreadsheet for calculation of means and standard deviations (SDs), for the time period analyzed. Results: The time for orthodontic preparation was 8.2 years with a range of attendance from 1 to 130 visits and a mean of 37 visits (SD ± 24). Conclusion: The results suggest that there is a longer time than reported in the literature for orthodontic preparation for orthognathic surgery, which could contribute to the increase in total time for orthodontic-surgical treatment.