One-Stage Versus Staged Palatal Repair in Unilateral Cleft Lip and Palate: Longitudinal Maxillofacial Growth, Speech, and Postoperative Outcomes.

ObjectiveThis study aimed to compare longitudinal cephalometric growth, speech outcomes, and secondary surgeries after 1-stage versus 2-stage palatoplasty in patients with non-syndromic unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP).DesignRetrospective single-institution cohort study.SettingTertiary academic craniofacial center.Patients/ParticipantsSixty-eight patients with non-syndromic UCLP treated between 1992 and 2015 who underwent primary palatal repair and had long-term clinical and radiographic follow-up. Forty-eight underwent 1-stage palatoplasty, and 20 underwent 2-stage palatoplasty.InterventionsOne-stage palatoplasty versus staged palatoplasty with initial soft palate repair followed by delayed hard palate closure.Main Outcome MeasuresLongitudinal cephalometric measurements at approximately 10 and 16 years, speech outcomes at 5, 10, 13, and 16 years, oronasal fistula, velopharyngeal insufficiency surgery, and need for continued speech follow-up after age 10.ResultsMean follow-up was 15.2 ± 4.4 years. Linear fixed-effects modeling showed significant age-related worsening in sagittal skeletal relationships in both groups, including decreases in sella-nasion-A point angle (SNA), A point-nasion-B point angle (ANB), and Wits appraisal, without significant effects of palatoplasty strategy or age-by-strategy interaction for key sagittal outcomes. Speech outcomes were comparable between groups across all timepoints, including hypernasality, nasal emission, compensatory articulation, intelligibility, and Cleft Audit Protocol for Speech-Augmented (CAPS-A) scores. Rates of secondary velopharyngeal surgery and continued speech follow-up after age 10 did not differ significantly. Oronasal fistula occurred more frequently after 2-stage palatoplasty than 1-stage palatoplasty (30% vs 9%, P = .02).ConclusionOne-stage and 2-stage palatoplasty demonstrated similar long-term growth and speech outcomes through adolescence. Two-stage repair was associated with a higher oronasal fistula rate but not greater secondary velopharyngeal or speech burden.