Outcomes of cleft care in Western Australia: A pilot study

The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes and delivery of cleft car e in Western Australia with the average standard of care in the United King dom (UK). This was achieved through a cross-sectional study involving child ren born with unilateral cleft lip and palate between April 1983 and March 1985 (12 year olds) or between April 1990 and March 1992 (5 year olds). A t otal of 38 children born with unilateral cleft lip and palate were under th e care of the cleft team based at Perth's Princess Margaret Hospital. Denta l arch relations, facial skeletal pattern, speech, hearing, success of alve olar bone grafting and dental health were measured. It was found that fewer Princess Margaret Hospital children in both age cohorts had revision surge ry and speech therapy compared with the UK average. The facial skeletal pat tern, speech, hearing and alveolar bone grafting outcomes from Princess Mar garet Hospital were similar to the UK at age 12. Seventeen per cent of the Princess Margaret Hospital 12 year olds had a poor dental arch relationship compared with 39 per cent in the UK. In the 5 year olds, most outcomes in Princess Margaret Hospital patients appeared better than the UK with lower residual treatment needs. While it is difficult to draw firm conclusions be cause of the small numbers involved, this study indicates standards need to be set and determined for Australia.