Time trend of incidence rates of cleft lip/palate in Taiwan from 1994 to 2013

Abstract

BackgroundThis study was to estimate the incidence rate of cleft lip and/or cleft palate (CL/P) in Taiwan from 1994 to 2013, and to assess the time trend over these years.MethodsRetrospective data analysis was performed on records of all newborns with CL/P treated at Chang Gung Craniofacial Center, the only treatment center for CL/P in Taiwan, from 1994 to 2013. Three-year moving average rates were computed and linear regression was used to explore the annual average percentage change.ResultsFrom 1994 to 2013, 7282 newborns with CL/P were identified, corresponding to an annual rate of 1.48‰ (95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.45‰–1.52‰). There was a significant decline of rate of cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL ± P) (−2.9% ± 0.2%, p < 0.0001) but slightly increase of rate of cleft palate (CP) only (+0.2% ± 0.07%, p = 0.004).ConclusionFrom 1994 to 2013, the annual rate of incidence of CL/P was 1.48‰ in Taiwan. The 2.9% annual decline of the rate was mainly from the CL ± P group, not the CP group.

Change in Prevalence of Orofacial Clefts in California between 1987 and 2010

“…An observed decline in prevalence for CLP, and not for CP alone, was observed by others (Chang et al, ; Rozendaal et al, ; Saad et al, ). Rozendaal et al observed a decrease in CLP, however as we observed, they did not detect a statistically significant decline in CP alone (Rozendaal et al, ).…”

“…Antenatal 2D ultrasound can more sensitively detect CLP than CP alone (da Silva Dalben, ). Multiple groups have suggested that the decline in orofacial clefts is a consequence of increased antenatal screening sensitivity and subsequent termination (Chang et al, ; Johnson & Sandy, ; Offerdal et al, ; Rozendaal et al, ). A study from Australia reported an increase in amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling between 1991 and 1996 from 5.8% to 10.1% (Cheffins et al, ).…”

“…Several studies have observed a decrease in prevalence of orofacial clefts over the last couple of decades. However, these studies are relatively small, may have had incomplete ascertainment of orofacial clefts, or have not explored such declines across various race/ethnic groups (Chang, See, & Lo, ; Rozendaal, Luijsterburg, Ongkosuwito, de Vries, & Vermeij‐Keers, ; Saad, Parina, Tokin, Chang, & Gosman, ).…”

The dual role of ROS, antioxidants and autophagy in cancer

“…In this issue of the Biomedical Journal , Chang et al. [13] report a drop in the incidence of cleft defects in Taiwan over the past 20 years, and suggest that this is due to an increase in the termination of fetuses with cleft defects.…”

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“…Orofacial clefts represent all those defects involving the upper lip, with or without extension to the alveolar ridge or primary palate, and to the hard or secondary palate [3]. The incidence of facial cleft varied in geographical distribution because of ethnic and environmental differences [4]. In Romania, in 1997, children with orofacial clefts represented 2.18% from the total of all children institutionalized and the average rate of prevalence of live births with orofacial clefts was 3.7/year [5].…”