Dentofacial Orthopedics for the Cleft Patient: The Latham Approach.

Presurgical infant dentofacial orthopedic treatment (PSIOT) is a process by which cleft maxillary and soft tissue segments can be moved before surgical repair of lip. One of the PSIOT approaches used is the fixed PSIOT using Latham appliances. In this article, the authors provide an overview of this approach and the step-by-step process of placing these appliances intraorally. Prospective randomized clinical studies are necessary to definitively answer concerns surrounding the long-term effects of PSIOT.