Drawover anaesthesia for cleft palate and lip surgery in Pokhara, Nepal

We describe our experience and problems with 335 children who had general anaesthesia for cleft palate and lip surgery. Drawover anaesthesia using halothane and trichloroethylene was easy to use and safe. The main early postoperative problems were airway obstruction and bleeding. Later postoperative care in the ward was hampered by the lack of nursing care and monitoring.