Closure of palatal fistulae

The occurrence of palatal fistulae in children with a cleft palate deformity after primary palatoplasty remains a relatively common complication. Symptomatic fistulae may cause problems with nasal air escape, nasal regurgitation, decreased speech intelligibility, articulation errors, and halitosis. A thorough understanding of the multiple reconstructive options, ranging from local flaps to free tissue transfer, is important in obtaining good patient outcomes. In this article, we describe some of the most commonly used methods for palatal closure.