Potential and limitations of cephalometric analysis of maxillofacial bone movement in the case of LeFort III-distraction.

BACKGROUND UND METHOD: The treatment of craniofacial deformities by means of distraction osteogenesis has become an established therapeutic procedure. Evaluation of the success of an operation is usually carried out via conventional cephalometry. Conventional forms of analysis seem problematic due to surgically-induced changes in the skull base. In this study we investigated the movement of the midface in the presence of a syndromerelated surgical indication employing two different types of analysis, namely those of Ricketts and Delaire. RESULTS: It seems that neither procedure is suitable for determining this type of bone movement conclusively. Comparing the two, the Delaire analysis possessed greater informative value in view of the altered geometry, and a combination of both procedures made more exact determination possible of the final position achieved.