Objective: The study aimed to evaluate difference in dental maturation timing between individuals with cleft lip and palate (CLP) and those without CLP (non-CLP) of similar age in an Egyptian population. Research on cleft deformities is crucial for raising societal awareness, enhancing patients’ quality of life, highlighting ethnic differences in maturational timing, and specifying treatment timing. Materials and Methods: Dental maturation was determined using panoramic X-rays, employing Demirjian’s staging dental age estimation index (DAEI) method (1973). Three hundred and seventeen panoramic radiographs were obtained from the Cairo University Orthodontic Department clinics, Egypt. X-rays were collected from orthodontic patients aged 6–18 years. Results: All teeth examined in the CLP group were significantly less mature than non-CLP group, with a difference of 0.59 ± 0.28 years, 95% confidence interval = 0.03%–1.15%, and P = 0.03*. Particularly, the second molar showed less dental development in CLP group in both genders and across all three chronological age groups ( P = 0.0001): 6–9, +9–12, and + 12–18 years. Conclusions: Dental maturation was lower in the CLP group. Second molar DAEI stages are considered a dental maturational indicator. Clinical Relevance: These dental outcomes provide a framework for improving efficiency, simplicity, and accessibility for patients’ parents, patients themselves, and all medical team involved in CLP treatment journey. Assessment in scheduling treatment steps for each CLP patient and introduces a simpler landmark: second molar DAEI stages. This simplifies for general doctors, pediatric dentists, parents, and patients to identify the next steps in treatment during regular checkups.
Mahfouz et al. (2026) studied this question.