Clinical and epidemiological profile of cleft lip and palate patients in Peru, 2006 – 2019

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the clinical-epidemiological profile of patients with cleft lip and / or palate in Peru from 2006 to 2019. MATERIAL AND METHODS: This retrospective and cross-sectional study analyzed 3,923 patients with cleft lip and palate attended by surgical missions of the Operación Sonrisa Perú from January 2006 to December 2019. The clinical profile of the patients treated included: type of cleft (cleft lip CL, cleft palate CP, cleft lip and palate CLP and submucosal SM), surgery performed (cheiloplasty, palatoplasty, cleft rhinoplasty, fistula repair, pharyngeal flap), surgical time according to number of interventions. Likewise, affiliation variables such as sex, age and birthplace were recorded. Descriptive analysis was performed. Associations were determined using the Pearson’s Chi-square test and Two-sample test of proportions were used for comparing the percentages during time. A p value <0.005 was considered significant. RESULTS: The most frequent diagnosis was CP (n = 1411, 35.97%). We identified a statistically significant association between the diagnosis of CL, CP and gender (p = 0.045), being more prevalent in males. A higher prevalence of CL was also observed on the left side and in males (n = 183). Cheiloplasty was the most frequent first surgical intervention performed (n = 837, 47.42%) followed by fistula repair as the second intervention (n = 428, 42.29%). CONCLUSIONS: Cleft lip and palate are more frequent in males, with CP being the most frequent. CL is more frequent on the left side and the first surgical approach in these patients is lip closure. Key words:Epidemiology, cleft lip and palate, surgical missions.