Cleft and Craniofacial Team Orthodontic Care in the United States: A Survey of the ACPA

Abstract

Objective: To better understand the capacity for orthodontic care, service features, and finances among members of the American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association (ACPA).

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Setting: ACPA-approved multidisciplinary cleft teams.

Participants: Cleft team coordinators.

Interventions: Coordinators were asked to complete the survey working together with their orthodontists.

Main outcome measure: Model for orthodontic care.

Results: Coordinators from 82 out of 167 teams certified by ACPA completed the survey (response rate = 49.1%). Most orthodontists were private practice volunteers (48%) followed by university/hospital employed (22.8%). Care was often delivered in community private practice facilities (44.2%) or combination of university and private practice facilities (39.0%). Half of teams reported offering presurgical infant orthopedics (PSIO), with nasoalveolar molding being the most common. Cleft/craniofacial patients typically comprise 25% or less of the orthodontists' practices. The presence of a university/hospital-based orthodontist was associated with higher rates of offering PSIO (P < .001) and an increased percentage dedication of their practice to cleft/craniofacial care (P < .001).

Conclusion: Orthodontic models across ACPA-certified teams are highly varied. The employment of full-time craniofacial orthodontists is less common but is highly correlated with a practice with a high percentage of cleft care and the offering of advanced services such as PSIO. Future work should focus on how to effectively promote such roles for orthodontists to ensure high-level care for cleft/craniofacial patients requiring treatment from infancy through skeletal maturity.

Keywords: facial growth; nonsyndromic clefting; orthodontics; orthognathic surgery; orthopedic treatment.