Velopharyngeal Insufficiency After Le Fort I Osteotomy in a Patient With Undiagnosed Occult Submucous Cleft Palate.

The authors present a 16-year-old patient with no known history of cleft palate who developed velopharyngeal insufficiency after a Le Fort I osteotomy performed for the correction of maxillary hypoplasia and a Class III malocclusion. Postoperative evaluation revealed the presence of velopharyngeal insufficiency and subtle findings of an occult submucous cleft palate. She had a pharyngeal flap 6 months later with successful correction of the velopharyngeal insufficiency. This case illustrates the need to screen for submucous cleft palate prior to orthognathic surgery.