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This study aimed to quantify the 3D asymmetry of the maxilla in patients with unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCP) and investigate the defect factors responsible for the variability of the maxilla on the cleft side using a deep‐learning‐based CBCT image segmentation protocol.

Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) images of 60 patients with UCP were acquired. The samples in this study consisted of 39 males and 21 females, with a mean age of 11.52 years (SD = 3.27 years; range of 8‐18 years).

The deep‐learning‐based protocol was used to segment the maxilla and defect initially, followed by manual refinement. Pairedt‐tests were performed to characterize the maxillary asymmetry. A multiple linear regression was carried out to investigate the relationship between the defect parameters and those of the cleft side of the maxilla.

The cleft side of the maxilla demonstrated a significant decrease in maxillary volume and length as well as alveolar length, anterior width, posterior width, anterior height and posterior height. A significant increase in maxillary anterior width was demonstrated on the cleft side of the maxilla. There was a close relationship between the defect parameters and those of the cleft side of the maxilla.

Based on the 3D volumetric segmentations, significant hypoplasia of the maxilla on the cleft side existed in the pyriform aperture and alveolar crest area near the defect. The defect structures appeared to contribute to the variability of the maxilla on the cleft side.

 

Abstract CMB-S4—the next-generation ground-based cosmic microwave background (CMB) experiment—is set to significantly advance the sensitivity of CMB measurements and enhance our understanding of the origin and evolution of the universe. Among the science cases pursued with CMB-S4, the quest for detecting primordial gravitational waves is a central driver of the experimental design. This work details the development of a forecasting framework that includes a power-spectrum-based semianalytic projection tool, targeted explicitly toward optimizing constraints on the tensor-to-scalar ratio, r , in the presence of Galactic foregrounds and gravitational lensing of the CMB. This framework is unique in its direct use of information from the achieved performance of current Stage 2–3 CMB experiments to robustly forecast the science reach of upcoming CMB-polarization endeavors. The methodology allows for rapid iteration over experimental configurations and offers a flexible way to optimize the design of future experiments, given a desired scientific goal. To form a closed-loop process, we couple this semianalytic tool with map-based validation studies, which allow for the injection of additional complexity and verification of our forecasts with several independent analysis methods. We document multiple rounds of forecasts for CMB-S4 using this process and the resulting establishment of the current reference design of the primordial gravitational-wave component of the Stage-4 experiment, optimized to achieve our science goals of detecting primordial gravitational waves for r > 0.003 at greater than 5 σ , or in the absence of a detection, of reaching an upper limit of r < 0.001 at 95% CL.