Biological age in children with clefts]

The skeletal and the dental maturity in a group of 189 children with cleft lip and/or cleft palate were determined by means of X-rays of the wrist joint and orthopantomogrammes. In 60 children, anthropometric determinations were also performed. 486 normal children involved in the Nijmegen growth study served as control subjects. The ages ranged from 4 to 14 years. A retardation in dental development was evidenced in boys with clefts. There was no remarkable difference in dental development between girls with clefts and girls without clefts. The progression in skeletal maturity was greater in girls with clefts than in girls without clefts. There was no remarkable difference in skeletal maturity between boys with clefts and normal boys. The determination of 10 anthropometric values revealed only a few remarkable differences between children with clefts and normal children.