Early prosthetic management of cleft palate. Articulation development prosthesis: a preliminary report.

This study evaluated the effects of early prosthetic intervention for achieving normal articulation development in cleft palate patients. Early surgery is the preferred method of treatment to permit normal articulation development. Prosthetic management provides an alternative treatment to promote more normal articulation development when early surgery is not planned. It can be concluded that a prosthesis must be placed prior to development of meaningful speech if improved articulation development is to be achieved. Close cooperation among surgeon, speech pathologist, and prosthodontist is necessary to ensure timely surgical deferral and prosthetic treatment.