Updates

Cleft Lip and Palate Center

 Research

At Texas Children’s Hospital, we strive to stay current with the latest advances in craniofacial research. Providing the best care means using the strongest available evidence to guide our decisions.

We track outcomes to improve surgical results, help families make the best-informed choices, and support ongoing quality improvement. For our cleft lip and palate patients, we use customized databases and documentation tools to monitor key measures. These include surgical volume, clinic visit volume, patient types, readmission rates, and length of stay after surgery.

By consistently reviewing this data, we can refine our approach and continue to improve the care we provide to all our families. 

Listed are just a few publications from our team in recent years: 

  1. Hollier LH Jr, Hopper RA, Flores RL. Introduction to “Advances in Cleft Care.” Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2025;156(4S-2):1S. 
  2. Mohan VC, Owens WR, Hopper RA. Retrospective Review of Open Tip Plasty for Bilateral Cleft Nasal Deformity before Adolescent Growth: A Single Surgeon’s Experience of 25 Consecutive Cases. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2025;156(4S-2):30S. 
  3. Hollier LH Jr. Introducing and Discussing the National Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness and Prevention. Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2025;156(1):192-193. 
  4. Mohan VC, Quirarte DM, Wilmot ME, Burns HR, Khansa I, Ching JA. Multidisciplinary Team Care: Cleft and Craniofacial Surgery. Semin Plast Surg. 2025;39(2):63-68
  5. Muller JN, Volk AS, Hollier LH Jr. Collaboration of Surgeons and Speech Pathologists in the Selection of Optimal Treatment; Role of Speech Pathologist and Audiologist in the Interdisciplinary Management of Patients With Clefts. J Craniofac Surg. 2025;36(3):1018-1020.
  6. Hollier LH Jr. Discussion: Integration of the CLEFT-Q Patient Reported Outcome Tool into a Multidisciplinary Cleft and Craniofacial Clinic: A proof of concept. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2024;154(2):356e-357e. 
  7. Davis MJ, Roy MG, Burns HR, Yim N, Wilson KD, Moore EE, Buchanan EP, Monson LA. Velopharyngeal Insufficiency Following Furlow Versus Straight Line Repair With Intravelar Veloplasty: A Single-institution Experience. J Craniofac Surg. 2024 Mar-Apr 01;35(2):547-552
  8. Appel R, Grush AE, Upadhyaya RM, Mann DG, Buchanan EP. Ethical Implications of Cleft Lip and Palate Repair in Patients with Trisomy 13 and Trisomy 18. The Cleft Palate Craniofacial Journal. 2024;61(8):1383-1388.
  9. Parham MJ, Williams AD, Layon SA, Burns HR, Abu-Ghname A, Hollier LH Jr. Geospatial Demand for Approved Cleft Care in the United States. PRS globe. 2024;12(8):e6090.
  10. Yim NH, Parham MJ, Cody RJ, Wirthlin J, Grush AE, Buchanan EP. Bone-Anchored Maxillary Protraction with Bollards Modified Miniplates: A Shift Forward in the Management of Cleft Lip and Palate Patients. Face. 2024;5(1):105-111
  11. Layon SA, Burns HR, Williams AD, Ding Y, Mohammad S, Buchanan EP. Liposomal Bupivacaine Use During Orthognathic Surgery in Cleft Lip and Palate Patients. The Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 2024;35(2):464-468
  12. Xue AS, Buchanan EP, Hollier LH Jr. Bilateral cleft lip repair - lessons from history (CME). Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2022;150(1):201e-210e.
  13. Roy MG, Davies LW, Guillen DE, Sequitin JD, Buchanan EP, Maricevich RS, Truong TA, Monson LA. Cleft Care Packages and the Impact on Postoperative Care Following a Primary Cleft Lip Repair. Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 2021;32(7):2282-2284.
  14. Xue AS, Buchanan EP, Hollier LH Jr. Update in Unilateral Cleft Lip Surgery(CME). Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. 2021;148(2):262e-274e.
  15. Sarrami SM, Skochdopole AJ, Ferry AM, Buchanan EP, Hollier LH Jr, Dempsey RF. Revisional Techniques for Secondary Cleft Lip Deformities. Semin Plast Surg. 2021;35(2):65-71.
  16. Ferry AM, Beh H, Dibbs RP, Davies LW, Xue AS, Dempsey RF, Olorunnipa S, Maricevich RS, Monson LA, Rodgers A, Wirthlin JO, Hollier LH Jr., Buchanan EP. Impact of COVID-19 on Cleft Surgical Care. FACE. 2021;2(1):6-12.
  17. Volk AS, Davis MJ, Dempsey RF, Masoumy M, Desai PK, Hubli E, Buchanan EP. A Global Evaluation of Surgical Techniques and Results of Unilateral Cleft Lip Repairs. Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 2020;31(8):2276-2279.
  18. Morris VE, Hashmi SS, Zhu L, Blackwell S, Buchanan EP, Mulliken JB, Blanton SH, Zheng WJ, Hecht JT, Letra A. Evidence for craniofacial enhancer variation underlying nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate. Human Genetics. 2020;139(10):1261-1272.
  19. Perdanasari AT, Wagner RD, Davis MJ, Masoumy M, Eisemann BS, Olshinka A, Buchanan EP. Nasal Alar Surface Area Differences after Unilateral Cleft Lip Repair: Long-Term Effects of the Perialar Incision. Journal of Craniofacial Surgery. 2020;31(6):1529-1532.
  20. Volk AS, Davis MJ, Narawane AM, Abu-Ghname A, Dempsey RF, Lambert EM, Tran H, Wirthlin JO, Buchanan EP. Quantification of Mandibular Morphology in Pierre Robin Sequence to Optimize Mandibular Distraction Osteogenesis. Cleft Palate Craniofac J. 2020;57(8):1032-1040.

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