Vital staining of palatal soft tissue in horseshoe Le Fort I osteotomy for superior repositioning of the maxilla.

In maxillary orthognathic surgery, superior repositioning of the maxilla is sometimes difficult, and removal of the bony interference, especially around the descending palatine artery, is very time-consuming in cases of severe maxillary impaction. A useful method introduced for superior repositioning of the maxilla is horseshoe-shaped osteotomy combined with Le Fort I osteotomy (horseshoe Le Fort I osteotomy). However, injury to the palatal soft tissue during horseshoe-shaped osteotomy may cause aseptic complications of the maxilla. Therefore, a safe method is required to prevent such injury to reduce the risk for aseptic necrosis. We describe here vital staining of palatal soft tissue in horseshoe Le Fort I osteotomy for safer superior repositioning of the maxilla.