REVIEW OF THE ROLE OF POTENTIAL TERATOGENS IN THE ORIGIN OF HUMAN NONSYNDROMIC ORAL CLEFTS

Oral clefts are common birth defects affecting approximately 1 every 1 ,000 caucasian newborns. While many syndromes with cleft lip with or w ithout cleft palate (CL/P) or with cleft palate (CP) are recognized, t he majority of oral clefts fall into the category of ''nonsyndromic or al clefts'' and the etiology of this group remains incompletely unders tood. Investigators agree that oral clefts are multifactorial in origi n, with both genetic and environmental factors in their etiology. Whil e animal models have identified several teratogens for oral clefts, th eir precise relevance for humans remains unclear. The goal of this wor k is to review literature on environmental exposures potentially assoc iated with non-syndromic oral clefts. (C) 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.