Psychosocial Adjustment in Norwegian Adults who Had Undergone Standardised Treatment of Complete Cleft Lip and Palate II. Self-reported problems and concerns with appearance

Abstract

Aspects of social and psychological adjustment were investigated in a sample of 233 Norwegian adults 20-35 years old with repaired complete cleft lip and palate (CLP); in 126 the cleft was on the left, in 45 on the right, and in 62 it was bilateral. All subjects received a standardised regimen of care from the Oslo cleft palate team. The study, based on response to a questionnaire, partly copied a national survey of social and economic life in the Norwegian population. Adults with complete clefts were compared with a large control sample of the same age. The purpose of this paper is to describe the occurrence of common psychological problems among subjects with CLP. Anxiety, depression, and palpitations were reported about twice as often by subjects with CLP compared with controls, and these psychological problems were strongly associated with concerns about appearance, dentition, speech, and desire for further treatment. These findings suggest that there is an impaired level of psychological wellbeing among subgroups of subjects with clefts.

Health Professionals’ Assessment of Health-Related Quality of Life Values for Oral Clefting by Age Using a Visual Analogue Scale Method

“…Part of the treatment for clefting extends throughout adolescence, during which psychological adjustment has been reported to be a problem as well (Kapp-Simon et al, 1992;Thomas et al, 1997). Lower psychological adjustment, cognitive performance, as well as social and economic achievement in processes such as marriage, educational attainment, and income level, have been reported as well among adults with oral clefts in several studies (Heller et al, 1981;Bjornsson and Agustsdottir, 1987;Ramstad et al, 1995aRamstad et al, , 1995bMarcusson et al, 2001; Nopolous et al, 2002). No studies have reported the impact of clefting on the quality of life of infants.…”

Self-perceived health related quality of life in adolescents with repaired cleft lip and palate

“…[12][13][14] Apart from being physically less attractive, communication problems during adolescent period can cause anxiety and depression. 15,16 There were 4 participants who were experiencing hearing deficit due to tympanic membrane damage sustained in young age. Addressing the comorbidities associated with cleft lip/palate effectively will go a long way in improving the quality of life later.…”

Development of a Valid and Reliable Instrument for the Assessment of Quality of Life in Adolescents With Clefts - Detection of Potential Mental Health Issues

“…The findings of Reinherz et al (1989) explained that a cleft is considered to be an illness in the minds of patients, so that may explain an increase in depressions at that age group. Adults with cleft suffer from anxiety and depression twice as often as the control group (Ramstad et al 1995). The cleft group reported they were mocked by their peers, and according to Storch et al (2003), the frequency of bullying is in a positive correlation with general anxiety, depression symptoms and loneliness.…”