Perfil de saúde bucal do paciente portador de fissura labiopalatina: estudo epidemiológico em hospital pediátrico do Nordeste Brasileiro

Abstract

Cleft lip/palate is a common congenital malformation due to failure on facial and palatal processes’ fusion. It is believed that its etiology results from the combination of genetic and environmental factors. In Brazil, it is estimated that 1 in 673 live births will present cleft lip/palate, similar to the world estimate. A number of alterations result from oral clefts and affect speech, swallowing, breastfeeding, chewing, facial and dental development, aesthetics and social life. Due to morphofunctional changes, these patients appear to be more susceptible to diseases and disorders of the oral cavity. The present study aimed to carry out an epidemiological study about diseases and alterations of the stomatognathic system in patients with cleft lip/palate followed at the Hospital Infantil Albert Sabin in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil, and to generate relevant data to the literature and public health. Files containing medical records, imaging exams and study models of 64 patients from 2005 to 2017 were analyzed. There was a higher prevalence of males and patients from the countryside. There was a predominance of left unilateral transforaminal cleft. 85.9% of the patients underwent cheiloplasty and palatoplasty in childhood. About 74% of patients had dental agenesis. 71.9% of the patients developed the "pre-canine" tooth. The mean DMF-T of the patients was 3.51, representing decay experience of moderate severity. Only 26.6% presented dental shape anomalies. 65.6% of the patients presented maxillary atresia and the need for expander treatment. There was strong statistical correlation (p<0.05) amongst the variants of cleft lip/palate and the variables cheiloplasty, presence/absence of the pre-canine tooth and dental agenesis. The data collected by the present study corroborate and add to the available literature on patients with cleft lip and palate. It is conclude that clefted patients present a significant higher need for specialized dental treatment, from prevention of caries disease to complex rehabilitation of the maxillofacial complex.