Strategies to improve regeneration of the soft palate muscles after cleft palate repair

Paola L Carvajal Monroy, Sander Grefte, Anne Marie Kuijpers-Jagtman, Frank A D T G Wagener, Johannes W Von den Hoff

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articleAcademicpeer-review

39 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Children with a cleft in the soft palate have difficulties with speech, swallowing, and sucking. These patients are unable to separate the nasal from the oral cavity leading to air loss during speech. Although surgical repair ameliorates soft palate function by joining the clefted muscles of the soft palate, optimal function is often not achieved. The regeneration of muscles in the soft palate after surgery is hampered because of (1) their low intrinsic regenerative capacity, (2) the muscle properties related to clefting, and (3) the development of fibrosis. Adjuvant strategies based on tissue engineering may improve the outcome after surgery by approaching these specific issues. Therefore, this review will discuss myogenesis in the noncleft and cleft palate, the characteristics of soft palate muscles, and the process of muscle regeneration. Finally, novel therapeutic strategies based on tissue engineering to improve soft palate function after surgical repair are presented.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)468-77
Number of pages10
JournalTissue Engineering - Part B: Reviews
Volume18
Issue number6
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Dec 2012

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