CONGENITAL MALFORMATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH CLEFT LIP AND PALATE

Clefts of the lip and palate generally represent a heterogeneous group of disorders affecting the lips and oral cavity. Cleft palate affects almost every function of the face except vision. Effects on speech, hearing, appearance, and psychology can lead to long lasting adverse outcomes for health and social integration. Typically, children with these disorders need multidisciplinary care from birth to adulthood and have higher morbidity and mortality throughout life than do unaffected individuals. Objectives of this study were to describe congenital malformations associated with cleft lip and palate and to describe the ratio of cleft palate in males and females. It was an observational & comparative study conducted at the Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery of the Children Hospital & The Institute of Child Health, Lahore from January 2013 to December 2013. 120 patients without specification of gender were included in the study. Data were collected through Questionnaires during 6 months. Results showed that out of 120 patients, 65 % were males while 35% were females, 61.7% have unilateral and 38.3% have bilateral cleft, In patients with unilateral cleft, left side was more affected than right. Parents of 63.3% patients have cousin marriage. About 20% patients have family history of cleft palate. Infants with oral clefts often have significantly high risk of other associated congenital defects along with congenital anomalies, so various malformations especially cardiac, central nervous system, ocular and facial defects may need to be considered in infants with facial clefts. This study also concludes that cleft palate is more common in male than female pediatric population.