Border collie with congenital cleft of the hard and soft palate.  The soft palate was closed by splitting the edges and direct apposition in 3 layers.  The hard palate was closed with the rollover or sandwich technique: this is preferred to the Langenbeck technique as it is more robust and more reliable, although anatomically less correct.  The bottom image shows the outcome at 3 weeks: the hard palate repair has a good result and although the caudal border of the soft palate has opened, this was not associated with clinical signs.

First published Wed, Jun 29 2011