Glossoplasty with Harada´s Technique in a Patient with Down Syndrome

Araceli Raposo; Günther Preisler; Fernando Salina & Carlos Muñoz

Summary

Macroglossia is a condition that often affects children with Down syndrome, it makes the tongue to always be exposed to the environment and suffer noticeable dryness. For these reasons it has been demonstrated that macroglossia treated surgically not only improves the esthetic aspect and the social acceptance, but functionally improves language, development of the mandible, and open bite, with repositioning of the dental arch occurring spontaneously. Many surgical techniques have been created and modified to reduce the size of the tongue. In this article we present the case of a patient with Down syndrome who underwent a glossoplasty with the Harada’s technique. The benefits of the glossoplasties, as well as the different techniques used for it are discussed.

KEY WORDS: macroglossia, treatment, reduction.

How to cite this article

RAPOSO, A.; PREISLER, G.; SALINAS, F. & MUÑOZ, C. Glossoplasty with Harada´s technique in a patient with Down Syndrome. Int. J. Odontostomat., 5(3):245-248, 2011.