Inverted Periosteal Flap vs Buccal Advancement Flap for Oroantral Communication Closure

June 2, 2026 updated by: Arab International University

Comparison of Inverted Periosteal Flap Versus Buccal Advancement Flap for Closure of Post-Extraction Maxillary Sinus Perforation: A Randomized Controlled Trial

This randomized controlled clinical study will evaluate the effectiveness of the inverted buccal periosteal flap in closing recent post-extraction oroantral communications and compare it with the conventional buccal advancement flap. The study will include 24 patients who develop an oroantral communication measuring 3-6 mm after non-surgical extraction of maxillary posterior teeth. Participants will be randomly allocated into two groups: the test group treated with the inverted buccal periosteal flap, and the control group treated with the buccal advancement flap. The primary outcome will be successful clinical closure of the communication, assessed by absence of oroantral fistula, nasal fluid leakage, and air leakage during the Valsalva test. Secondary outcomes will include postoperative pain, facial edema. Patients will be followed for up to 45 days after surgery.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Oroantral communication is an abnormal connection between the oral cavity and the maxillary sinus, most commonly occurring after extraction of maxillary posterior teeth. If not closed properly, it may lead to oroantral fistula or maxillary sinus complications.

This randomized controlled clinical study will compare the inverted buccal periosteal flap with the conventional buccal advancement flap for closure of recent post-extraction oroantral communications. The study will include 24 patients with communications measuring 3-6 mm and diagnosed within 48 hours after non-surgical extraction.

Participants will be randomly divided into two groups. In the test group, closure will be performed using the inverted buccal periosteal flap, where the periosteal layer is dissected, inverted over the defect, and sutured to the palatal tissue without tension. In the control group, closure will be performed using the buccal advancement flap, where a buccal mucoperiosteal flap is advanced palatally and sutured to cover the communication.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

24

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Syria
      • Damascus, Syria
        • School of Dental Medicine

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Presence of an oroantral communication (OAC) with a diameter between 3-7 mm.
  2. Communication resulting from extraction of posterior maxillary teeth (first molar, second molar, third molar, or second premolar).
  3. Recent perforation occurring no more than 48 hours prior to surgical intervention.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Presence of foreign bodies or residual tooth fragments within the maxillary sinus.
  2. Presence of systemic diseases that could impair wound healing (e.g., uncontrolled diabetes, immunosuppression).
  3. History of maxillary sinusitis prior to the perforation.
  4. Presence of periapical lesions or cysts at the extraction site.
  5. Smokers.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Inverted Buccal Periosteal Flap
Participants in this arm will receive surgical closure of the post-extraction oroantral communication using the inverted buccal periosteal flap. A full-thickness mucoperiosteal flap will be elevated, the periosteal layer will be dissected and inverted over the defect, then sutured to the palatal tissue to achieve tension-free closure.
Procedure: Inverted Buccal Periosteal Flap
Surgical closure of post-extraction oroantral communication using an inverted buccal periosteal flap. A full-thickness mucoperiosteal flap will be elevated, followed by dissection of the periosteal layer from the overlying mucosa. The periosteal flap will then be inverted over the defect and sutured to the palatal tissue to achieve tension-free closure.
Active Comparator: Buccal Advancement Flap
Participants in this arm will receive surgical closure of the post-extraction oroantral communication using the conventional buccal advancement flap. A buccal mucoperiosteal flap will be elevated, advanced palatally, and sutured to the palatal mucosa to cover the communication.
Procedure: Buccal Advancement Flap
Surgical closure of post-extraction oroantral communication using the conventional buccal advancement flap. A buccal full-thickness mucoperiosteal flap will be elevated, released by periosteal scoring, advanced palatally, and sutured to the palatal mucosa to cover the communication.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Successful Closure of Oroantral Communication
Time Frame: 1 week, 15 days, and 45 days after surgery.
Successful closure will be assessed clinically by confirming the absence of oroantral fistula formation, absence of fluid leakage through the nose, and absence of air leakage or air bubbles during the Valsalva test.
1 week, 15 days, and 45 days after surgery.

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Postoperative Pain
Time Frame: Postoperative days 1, 3, 5, and 7.
Postoperative pain will be assessed using the Visual Analog Scale. The scale ranges from 0 to 10, where 0 indicates no pain and 10 indicates the worst possible pain. Higher scores indicate a worse outcome.
Postoperative days 1, 3, 5, and 7.
Postoperative Facial Edema
Time Frame: Postoperative days 1, 3, and 5.
Facial edema will be assessed using extraoral linear measurements between fixed facial reference points. The measured distances will be used to estimate postoperative facial swelling and compare changes between the two study groups. Higher values indicate greater facial edema and therefore a worse outcome.
Postoperative days 1, 3, and 5.

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Arab International University

Collaborators

Damascus University

Investigators

  • Study Director: Saleh Al Kurdi, PhD, Arab International University
  • Principal Investigator: Majd S Mohammad, DDs, Damascus University
  • Study Chair: Omar A Heshmeh, PhD, Damascus University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

September 15, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

August 8, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

December 10, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 2, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 2, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 5, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 5, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 2, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • DN-230426-776

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Clinical Trials on Oroantral Communication

Clinical Trials on Inverted Buccal Periosteal Flap

Search Similar Trials

Sponsors and Collaborators

Medical Conditions

Drug Interventions

CROs by country

CROs in Belgium

Conditions

Rare Diseases

Drug Interventions

Dietary Supplements

Sponsor/Collaborators

Locations

Subscribe