Radiographic Assessment of Secondary Autogenous Bone Grafting in Alveolar Cleft Patient at Kirtipur Hospital

Abstract

Introduction: Alveolar bone graft is the procedure to fill the gap in the gum with bone so the teeth and jaw can grow normally. It is an integral part and most commonly performed procedure in cleft patients. The study is aimed to evaluate the outcomes of secondary alveolar bone grafting through bone fill at alveolar defect site using 2- dimensional radiographs.
Methods: We conducted a single center prospective cohort study at Kirtipur Hospital, Nepal from July 1st, 2025 to December 30th, 2025. Patients who underwent alveolar bone graft were evaluated for outcome of grafting through bone fill seen on intra oral radiographs using Kindelan score grading at 3-4 months post operatively. Outcomes were dichotomized as successful (Kindelan score 1–2) and failure (Kindelan score 3–4).
Results: We had a total of 16 cases with 6 males (37.5%) and 10 female (62.5%) patients who had a median age 15.5 years (IQR 11.5, 18). Radiographic success as defined by Kindelan score 1–2 was achieved in 12 cases (75.0%) and failure in 4 cases (25%) with no statistically significant association between sex and radiographic success (p = 0.234). There was good to excellent intra-observer agreement (ICC = 0.89 & 0.96 for observer 1 & 2) and excellent inter-observer reliability (ICC = 0.96).
Conclusion: Secondary autogenous alveolar bone grafting demonstrated favorable early radiographic outcomes, with 75% of patients achieving satisfactory bone fill at 3–4 months postoperatively. The Kindelan scoring system proved to be a reliable and reproducible method for radiographic evaluation