A comparison of autogenous bone graft combined with deproteinized bovine bone and autogenous bone graft alone for treatment of alveolar cleft

This study assessed the use of composite autogenous bone and deproteinized bovine bone (DBB) for repairing alveolar cleft compared with autogenous bone alone in terms of clinical outcomes and patient morbidity. 30 patients with a mean age of 10.2 ± 1.7 years were randomly divided into two groups. Group I used autogenous cancellous bone graft harvested from the anterior iliac crests by the conventional trapdoor approach. Group II used a composite of DBB and autogenous cancellous bone harvested by a trephine bone collector; the proportion of 1:1 by volume was used. The bone graft quantities of both groups decreased with time. Their average changes were not statistically different over 24 months after grafting. The canines of both groups could spontaneously or orthodontically erupt through the grafting areas. Patients in group II recovered from uncomfortable walking significantly faster than those in group I (p < 0.05) and their duration of hospital stay was significantly shorter than those in group I (p < 0.05). The average operation time, intra-operative blood loss and postoperative pain were less in group II than in group I (p > 0.05).