Pattern of cleft lip and palate in Benin City, Nigeria

A CAJM article on the pattern of cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) in Benin City, Nigeria.Objective: To study the pattern of cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) in Benin City, Nigeria and to compare the findings with reports from other parts of the world. The results of this study may be used to improve the welfare of affected patients. Design: A descriptive study. Setting: The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Subjects: 103 ethnic Nigerian patients with cleft lip and/or palate. Main Outcome Measures: Consecutive ethnic Nigerian patients presenting with CL/P were studied. Patients’ data collected included age, sex, ethnic group, type of CL/P and the laterality pattern. Descriptive statistics were generated for all the variables recorded. Results: There were 49.5% females and 50.5 % males; 95.1% were children and 4.9% were adults. The ethnic groups most often affected were Urhobo 29.1%, Bini 27.1% and Ibo 17.4%. The combined cleft lip and palate 60.2% was the commonest type of cleft. There were 28.2% patients with cleft lip only. More (7.8%) females were affected by the isolated cleft palate deformity. Twenty five patients had exceeded the time of repair. Their reasons were ignorance (36%) and financial constraints (64%) Conclusion: The data from this study is consistent with studies from other parts of the world. However, a high proportion of patients did not have access to early treatment due to ignorance and financial constraints. Public enlightenment and financial assistance for the indigent patient is recommended

Maxillofacial Trauma Due to Road Traffic Accidents in Benin City, Nigeria: A Prospective Study

Background: The incidence and causes of road traffic accidents (RTAs) vary with geographical location. The economic and social costs of RTAs are enormous. The knowledge of aetiologic factors and associated injury patterns may be important in planning for prevention and treatment. The aim of this study was to document the aetiological factors and the frequency of maxillofacial injuries due to RTAs. Methods: Over a six-month period, 312 patients with facial trauma due to RTAs were prospectively studied. The demographic parameters, the cause of the RTA, the vehicle type, the use of seat belts, helmets, and other safety devices were recorded. Distribution of maxillofacial bone and soft tissue injuries by vehicle type as well as associated injuries were documented. Results: The minibus was the vehicle type most often involved (36.2%) and tyre blowout (21.2%) was identified as the most common contributory factor. Males 117 (37.5%) in the 21 - 30 year- age range were most often involved. The forehead was most often the site of soft tissue injury (37.3%) while the mandible was the facial bone most often fractured (29.2%). Head injury (55.8%) was the commonest associated injury. Conclusion: The low utilization of safety devices like seat belts and air bags as well as the absence and non-enforcement of road traffic legislation were identified as aetiological factors

Pattern of cleft lip and palate in Benin City, Nigeria

Objective: To study the pattern of cleft lip and/or palate (CL/P) in Benin City, Nigeria and to compare the findings with reports from other parts of the world. The results of this study may be used to improve the welfare of affected patients. Design: A descriptive study. Setting: The University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. Subjects: 103 ethnic Nigerian patients with cleft lip and/or palate. Main Outcome Measures: Consecutive ethnic Nigerian patients presenting with CL/P were studied. Patients’ data collected included age, sex, ethnic group, type of CL/P and the laterality pattern. Descriptive statistics were generated for all the variables recorded. Results: There were 49.5% females and 50.5 % males; 95.1% were children and 4.9% were adults. The ethnic groups most often affected were Urhobo 29.1%, Bini 27.1% and Ibo 17.4%. The combined cleft lip and palate 60.2% was the commonest type of cleft. There were 28.2% patients with cleft lip only. More (7.8%) females were affected by the isolated cleft palate deformity. Twenty five patients had exceeded the time of repair. Their reasons were ignorance (36%) and financial constraints (64%) Conclusion: The data from this study is consistent with studies from other parts of the world. However, a high proportion of patients did not have access to early treatment due to ignorance and financial constraints. Public enlightenment and financial assistance for the indigent patient is recommended

Postgraduate Dental Training in Nigeria: Challenges in the Era of COVID-19 Pandemic

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Perception of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in a University Community

Background: Oral and maxillofacial surgery is a specialty that is expanding its frontiers of surgical anatomic definition. There has been no study in Nigeria to ascertain the level of knowledge of the specialty by the public. Materials and Methods: The population of the University of Benin Community is about 47,000 inhabitants. Students form the bulk of the population. A questionnaire was designed to assess the knowledge of the community of the specialties of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT), and plastic Surgery. They were asked some questions on their choice of surgeon to treat them if they or a member of their families had an identified surgical problem. They were asked whether the title of OMFS was suitable and its relevance in a developing country. Results: Two hundred copies of the questionnaire were collected which represented 80% of the sample. There were 48% males and 52% females with an age range of 16 to 45 years. Less than half (43.5%) of the respondents have heard of OMFS, 55% and 87.5% have heard of the ENT and Plastic Surgeon respectively. Eighty nine percent of respondents think the specialty is relevant in a developing country and 40.5% thought the name should not be changed. Conclusion: The results show a general lack of awareness of OMFS. (Nig J Surg Res 2001; 3: 139 – 146) KEY WORDS: Perception, Oral, Maxillofacial Surger

Repair of alveolar bone defect in a cleft lip and palate using premaxillary bone graft

Oral clefts pose a growing public health problem on a global and national scale. Oral and Maxillofacial surgeons are increasingly likely to come across challenging orofacial clefts, especially complete bilateral cleft lip and palate in infancy. We present a case of bone harvest from a bulbous premaxilla for grafting an alveolar bone defect in an infant. The literature review discusses issues on alveolar defect, alveolar closure, time and types alveolar bone grafting. The purpose of this paper is to report an attempt at utilizing portions of a bulbous premaxilla to fill the alveolar defect at the time of cleft lip repair. The finding of this report is to encourage the Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons to utilize the bones harvested from the premaxilla instead of choosing extra donor sites thereby reducing morbidity following grafting procedure.Keywords: Alveolar bone, grafting, premaxill

Prevalence and antenatal determinants of orofacial clefts in Benin City, Edo State Nigeria

Aim: This study was undertaken to determine the prevalence and antenatal determinants of orofacial clefts in Southern Nigeria. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study undertaken at the Maxillofacial Units of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital and the Central Hospital, Benin City, Nigeria respectively. The prevalence and antenatal determinants of cleft lip and palate were determined. Result: Cleft lip and palate were often encountered in clinical practice in Benin City with a prevalence of 1.35%. The results showed that orofacial clefts were commoner in females and that the combined unilateral cleft lip and palate was the commonest entity encountered amongst the cases. The following risk factors were associated with the risk of development of cleft lip and palate: Paternal age >40years, maternal age >35years, genetic/family history, low socio-economic status, alcohol consumption and indulgence in the intake of herbal medications in pregnancy. Conclusion: Public health education programmes and advocacy activities geared towards raising awareness of the identified risk factors for the development of cleft lip and or cleft palate would go a long way to obviate the occurrence and reduce the burden.Key Words: Prevalence, Antenatal determinants, orofacial clefts, Southern Nigeri

Antenatal determinants of oro-facial clefts in Southern Nigeria

Objectives: Cleft lip with or without cleft palate, is the most common serious congenital anomaly that affects the orofacial regions. The management and care of the cleft patient constitutes a substantial proportion of the workload of the Nigerian maxillofacial surgeon and allied specialties. Yet, there are no specific programmes targeted at this group. We believe that the findings of this study is capable of identifying useful interventions for designing programs that will lead to a reduction in the burden of orofacial cleft in Nigeria. Methods: It was a transverse cross-sectional study that was undertaken at the Maxillofacial Units of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital and the Central Hospital, Benin City respectively. The prevalence and antenatal determinants of cleft lip and palate were determined. Results: Cleft lip and palate were often encountered in clinical practice in Benin City with a prevalence of 1.35%. The results showed that orofacial clefts were commoner in females and that the combined unilateral cleft lip and palate was the commonest entity encountered amongst the cases. The following risk factors were associated with the risk of development of cleft lip and palate: Paternal age >40years, maternal age >35years, genetic/family history, low socio-economic status, alcohol consumption and indulgence in the intake of herbal medications in pregnancy. Conclusion: Public health education programmes and advocacy activities geared towards raising awareness of the identified risk factors for the development of cleft lip and or cleft palate would go a long way to obviate the occurrence and reduce the burden