Descriptive epidemiology of oral clefts in a multiethnic population, Hawaii, 1986-2000

To describe the relationship between oral clefts and demographic and clinical factors in Hawaii.

Data were obtained from a birth defects registry and included all infants and fetuses with oral clefts delivered during 1986 through 2000. Subjects were categorized as total, isolated, and nonisolated cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL+/-P) or cleft palate without cleft lip (CP).

There were 352 total subjects of CL+/-P and 192 total subjects of CP with corresponding rates per 10,000 live births of 12.5 for CL+/-P and 6.8 for CP. Total, isolated, and nonisolated CL+/-P rates demonstrated no clear pattern by maternal age. The total and nonisolated CP rates tended to be higher among older maternal age groups. The total CL+/-P rate was higher among Far East Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Filipinos than among whites. The total CP rate was higher among Far East Asians and Pacific Islanders than among whites, whereas the rate for Filipinos was lower than for whites. The total CL+/-P rate was substantially lower among females (rate ratio 0.62, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.49 to 0.77) and the total CP rate substantially higher among females (rate ratio 1.52, 95% CI = 1.13 to 2.06). Both CL+/-P and CP were more common with lower birth weight and gestational age among the total, isolated, and nonisolated groups.

Oral cleft risk was associated with maternal race/ethnicity, sex, birth weight, and gestational age. Although some of the observed associations were consistent with the literature, others were not.