Epidemiologic trends of infants with orofacial clefts in a multiethnic country: a retrospective population-based study

Abstract

Cleft births surveillance is essential in healthcare and prevention planning. Data are needed in precision medicine to target upstream management for at-risk individuals. This study characterizes Singapore’s population-based orofacial cleft topography by ethnicity and gender, and establishes the cleft cohort’s infant mortality rate. Data, in the decade 2003 to 2012, were extracted by the National Birth Defects Registry. Trend testing by linear regression was at p < 0.05 significance level. Prevalence per 10,000 for population-based cleft live births was 16.72 with no significant upward trend (p = 0.317). Prevalence rates were 8.77 in the isolated cleft group, 7.04 in the non-isolated cleft group, and 0.91 in the syndromic cleft group. There was significant upward trend in infants with non-isolated clefts (p = 0.0287). There were no significant upward trends in infants with isolated clefts and syndromic clefts. Prevalence rates were sexually dimorphic and ethnic-specific: male 17.72; female 15.78; Chinese group 17.17; Malay group 16.92; Indian group 10.74; and mixed ethnic origins group 21.73. The overall infant mortality rate (IMR) was 4.8% in the cohort of 608 cleft births, which was more than double the population-based IMR of 2.1% in the same period. Infants with non-isolated and syndromic clefts accounted for 96.6% of the deaths.

Orofacial Cleft in Rwanda: a Scoping Review of Empirical Evidence

“…Other studies have also shown some variations across gender and other social variables [27][28][29] This rate differs between males and females, with 17.72 per 10,000 in males and 15.78 per 10,000 in females. This suggests a slight sexual dimorphism, with a higher prevalence in males [29]. The prevalence of live births with cleft lip and/or palate varies among different ethnic groups.…”

“…The prevalence of live births with cleft lip and/or palate varies among different ethnic groups. For example, the prevalence is highest among those of mixed ethnic origins and lowest among those of Indian ethnic origin [29]. Another study found that that OFC was more prevalent among Asian and Caucasian populations while African populations had the lowest [27].…”

“…For instance, Mumena and colleagues; and Belachew and colleagues reported on the gender distribution of orofacial cleft cases, indicating different ratios for various types of cleft conditions (cleft lip, cleft palate, and cleft lip and palate) [15,26]. Other studies have also shown some variations across gender and other social variables [27][28][29] This rate differs between males and females, with 17.72 per 10,000 in males and 15.78 per 10,000 in females. This suggests a slight sexual dimorphism, with a higher prevalence in males [29].…”

“…The infant mortality rate for infants with cleft lip and/or palate is to be 48 per 1000 births (4.8%), which is more than double the infant mortality rate of the general population during the same period [28]. This indicates that infants with clefts are at a higher risk of mortality [29]. Factors such as antimiscarriage medications, uterine wall abnormalities, and maternal stress may contribute to the risk.…”

The Global Occurrences of Cleft Lip and Palate in Pediatric Patients and Their Association with Demographic Factors: A Narrative Review

“…Another study that was conducted within the Southeast Asian region was a study conducted by Yow, Jin, and Yeo (2021). In their study, Yow, Jin, and Yeo (2021) reported the prevalence of orofacial cleft according to the patient ethnic groups, which was as follows: 17.17 per 10,000 births for Chinese ethnicity, 16.92 per 10,000 births for Malay ethnicity, 10.74 per 10,000 births for Indian ethnicity, and 21.73 per 10,000 births for mixed ethnic origins [ 26 ].…”