Treatment of midfacial hypoplasia in syndromic and cleft lip and palate patients by means of a rigid external distractor (RED).

INTRODUCTION: Distraction Osteogenesis (DO) became an alternative for the treatment of severe craniofacial skeletal dysplasias. The rigid external distraction device (RED) is successfully used to advance the maxilla and all the maxillary-orbital-frontal complex (monobloc) in children, adolescents and adults. This approach provides predictable and stable results, and it can be applied alone or with craniofacial orthognathic surgical procedures.
OBJECTIVE: In the present article, the technical aspects relevant to an adequate application of the RED will be described, including the planning, surgical and orthodontic procedures.