Cleft lip and palate assessment form: Medical history, oral-peripheral characteristics, speech problems

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Objective: The objective of the study is to identify the medical histories, oral-peripheral characteristics and speech problems of children with cleft lip and palate (CLP) or craniofacial anomalies, and eventually create an assessment form that highlights the factors that should be taken into consideration in the examination of those children. Materials and Methods: An assessment form was developed and used to assess with a descriptive method the medical history, oral peripheral, speech, and resonance characteristics of children with CLP. The study included 56 (21 females and 35 males) children with CLP. The results are presented as frequency or percentage. Results: About 20% of the CLP patients were offspring of consanguineous marriage and about 30% had positive family history of CLP. The major difficulty families experienced was feeding. Hearing impairment at various degrees was reported in 23% of the participants. The presence of cardiovascular, renal, neurological and endocrinological problems, and symptoms addressed in peripheral examination were identified as critical in discriminating syndromic cases. Assessment of the speech skills showed backing to be the most prevalent error among the participants. Conclusion: The form that was developed in scope of this study was observed to successfully define the medical history, oral-peripheral characteristics and speech problems of individuals with CLP. The form, however, needs further testing in larger populations and comparison to non-CLP populations.