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Presentation weight indices for patients with cleft and non-affected children: A two-centre study
Chinedu Michael Okoli1, Edna Achionye2, Michael Olatunji Olaolu3
1Department of Burns and Plastic Surgery, National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria.
Insights
Children with cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) often have poor weight gain, increasing risks. Early nutritional support is crucial, especially for those with combined CL/P, to improve health outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Nutritional Science
- Craniofacial Anomalies
Background:
- Children with cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) face societal challenges, often leading to malnutrition and poor weight gain.
- This lack of adequate care can delay essential surgical repair, prolonging nutritional and psychological difficulties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess if children with CL/P present below the 75th percentile of expected weight compared to children without clefts during routine immunizations.
- To investigate differences in presenting weight among children with various types of cleft abnormalities.
Main Methods:
- A retrospective study analyzing 923 medical records (363 with CL/P) from Nigerian healthcare facilities (2010-2014).
- Data included children attending immunization and surgical clinics, with statistical analysis using SPSS.
Main Results:
- No significant weight difference was found between children without clefts and those with CL/P compared to the 75th percentile on first or second visits.
- A significant difference was observed for children with combined CL/P presenting below the 75th percentile weight on their first visit (P = 0.041).
Conclusions:
- Children with combined CL/P are at risk of presenting with inadequate weight.
- Early nutritional rehabilitation is recommended for children with clefts, particularly those with combined CL/P, to mitigate health risks.
Background:
Children with cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) face many challenges in the society. They tend to suffer malnutrition and therefore poor weight gain due to lack of standard care, especially from their parents and society at large. The poor weight gain leads to delayed surgical repair of the cleft abnormality leading to prolonged nutritional and psychological challenges for all concerned.
Objective:
The aim of the study was to determine if children without cleft abnormalities presenting for routine immunisation and children with cleft abnormalities are both likely to be less than the 75th percentile of expected weight at the time of presentation, and if there is any difference in presenting weight amongst children with different cleft types.
Materials And Methods:
This was a retrospective study. Data of children that attended the immunisation clinic of the Department of Primary Health of the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, and routine surgical clinic of the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria, and the Good Shepherd Specialist Hospital, Enugu, Nigeria, between January 2010 and December 2014 with a diagnosis of CL/P, were obtained from the medical records. The data were analysed with SPSS and the confidence interval was 95%.
Results:
A total of 923 medical records were reviewed for the study, out of which 363 were for children with cleft abnormalities. There was no significant difference in the weight of the children without cleft and presenting for routine immunisation compared with their expected 75th percentile, or children with cleft abnormality compared with their expected 75th percentile (either in their first or in their second visits). With the children that presented with CL/P, there was a significant difference noted amongst children with both CL/P deformity with the expected 75th percentile weight, irrespective of whether the combination was unilateral or bilateral, with P = 0.041. This difference was noted in their first visit.
Conclusion:
Children with combined CL/P are at risk of presenting with poor weight. Nutritional rehabilitation considered early with children with cleft and particularly those children with combined CL/P.
