PURPOSE: To compare speech and velopharyngeal function after pharyngeal flap and intravelar veloplasty techniques for the correction of residual velopharyngeal dysfunction. METHODS: It was carried out a retrospective study analyzing 148 cases of cleft lip and palate operated and submitted to velopharyngeal dysfunction surgical correction, 77 with pharyngeal flap (mean age: 20.4 years) and 71 with intravelar veloplasty (mean age: 16.2 years). Speech resonance, presence of compensatory articulations, nasal air emission, and velopharyngeal gap size were assessed before and after the use of both techniques. RESULTS: Sixty four (83%) of the 77 cases submitted to pharyngeal flap presented resonance improvement, while 48 (68%) of the 71 cases with intravelar veloplasty improved, with significant difference between the groups. Six (8%) subjects with pharyngeal flap, and two (3%) with intravelar veloplasty showed improvement in compensatory articulations, while nasal air emission improved in 17 (22%) cases with pharyngeal flap, and 18 (26%) with intravelar veloplasty. No significant differences were found between the groups regarding compensatory articulations and nasal air emission. The velopharyngeal gap size reduced in 75 (96%) cases with pharyngeal flap, and 46 (66%) with intravelar veloplasty, with a significant difference between the groups. CONCLUSION: The pharyngeal flap technique was more effective in improving resonance and velopharyngeal closure, when compared to intravelar veloplasty.
Cleft lip; Cleft palate; Velopharyngeal insufficiency; Speech disorders; Palate
