**3.1 Lateral incisor in the cleft area**

The permanent maxillary lateral incisor in CLP patients is a tooth of much interest and has been widely researched on, due to its proximity to the cleft and hence vulnerability to maldevelopment and injury. Disrupted development at the site of the cleft could also be due to altered neurovascular anatomy that could affect the developing tooth germ [42].

Some primary maxillary lateral incisors were found to be macrodonts whereas the permanent lateral incisors were microdonts or peg-shaped [43]. It has been reported as the most commonly missing tooth in CLP patients with a frequency ranging from 19.2–39.3% [3, 17, 44–47].
