Prevalence of nonsyndromic oral clefts in a reference hospital in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, between 2000-2005

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to analyze the prevalence of nonsyndromic oral clefts in children receiving treatment at the Center for the Rehabilitation of Craniofacial Anomalies, José do Rosário Vellano University, Alfenas, MG, Brazil. All the data for the epidemiological study was retrieved from the files of 126 pediatric patients with oral clefts without any additional malformation, who came to the center for treatment between 2000 and 2005. A predominance of clefts was observed in Caucasians, and the ratio of male to female was 1.3. Males were 2.57 times more affected by cleft lip and palate (CLP) than females. CLP with a prevalence of 39.68% and isolated cleft lip (CL) with a prevalence of 38.09% were the most common anomalies, followed by isolated cleft palate (CP; 22.23%). Complete and unilateral CLP (26.19%) presented the highest prevalence, followed by incomplete and unilateral CL (23.81%). The present study presents the experience of a reference hospital in the state of Minas Gerais; however, the real prevalence of oral clefts in Brazil is still unknown. Our findings differ from those of a few previous Brazilian reports because they suggest similar prevalences of CLP and CL, and a higher prevalence of CLP in Caucasian males.

Analysis of familial incidence of non-syndromic cleft lip and palate in a Brazilian population

“…Non-syndromic or isolated cleft lip, with or without cleft palate (NSCL/P), occurs in a wide geographic distribution, with an average birth prevalence of 1:700 (1). We verified the incidence of 1.46 CL/P for each 1.000 life births in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil (3). Every two minutes, one child is born in the world with cleft: 660 children every day and 235,000 a year.…”

A review of seasonality of cleft births – The Brazil experience

“…1 In Brazil, epidemiological studies demonstrated that incidence of CL/P episodes varies from 0.19 to 1.54 per 1000 births. 2,3 Approximately 65% to 70% of cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CLP) and 40% to 70% of cleft palate only (CP) were isolated defects [4][5][6] and the remaining related to syndromic clefts. [7][8][9] A recent systematic literature review discussing the issue have also demonstrated that its incidence varies according to gender, 2:1 being the ratio of males to females for cleft lip and palate and 1:2 the approximate ratio of male to female for isolated CP, as well as unilateral clefts are more common than bilateral clefts, and of the unilateral cases of non-syndromic cleft lip and palate, left-sided cleft lips occur more frequently than right-sided cleft lips.…”

Parental age is related to the occurrence of cleft lip and palate in Brazilian populations

“…The prevalence of NSCL/P varies among different populations. It has an estimated prevalence between 0.36 and 1.54 per 1,000 live births in Brazil 3,4 . The risk factors associated with NSCL/P are not completely understood, but there is a clear interaction between genetic and environmental factors in the etiology of this complex defect 5 .…”