Objective of this prospective study was to assess the acquisition of prescribing skill of preclinicalmedical and dental undergraduate students. Prescription writing skills of 258 students of both firstand second year of MBBS and BDS students were analyzed through an objective structured practicalexamination. MBBS student of second year scored 85.01% and 92.82% respectively in physician anddrug related component whereas first year MBBS students scored 89.9% and 83.4%. BDS studentof first year scored 91.96% and 86.33% in physician and drug related components which is betterthan second year that scored 83.33% and 77.94% respectively. This study revealed that the studentsof both courses acquire prescribing skills to a limited extent during preclinical phase. Prescribingerrors were found both in physician and drug related components. To minimize the different form ofprescribing errors vigorous training in the internship period will help to minimize prescribing errorsand improve rational prescribing too.Key words: dental, examination, medical, objective, prescription, student

Objectives Clefts of lip (CL), palate (CP), or both (CLP) are the most common orofacial congenital malformations found among live births, accounting for a large number of head and neck anomalies. To date, little is known regarding the epidemiology and pattern of orofacial clefts in Nepal. The objectives were to know the frequency and pattern of orofacial clefts in Eastern Nepal and compare with different parts of the world.Methods A retrospective study was conducted at B P Koirala Institute of Health Sciences to identify all children with orofacial clefts who were treated during a period of five years. Cleft lip and/or palate records were obtained from patient files in the Hospital's Medical Record Department. Age at presentation, sex, region of origin, type and laterality of the cleft were recorded.Results A total of 398 orofacial cleft cases were seen during the period. Isolated cleft lip (CL) was the most common cleft type followed closely by cleft palate (CP).Conclusions The distribution of clefts by side showed a significant preponderance of the left side followed by the right and bilateral sides.