Growth Parameters in Children with Non-syndromic Cleft Lip and Palate versus Healthy Controls: A Cohort Study from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Background: Cleft lip and palate (CLP) can have an impact on the physical development of children; however, data from such studies is currently limited.

Objectives: To compare growth parameters between children with non-syndromic CLP and healthy controls in Saudi Arabia.

Materials and methods: This case-control retrospective cohort study included Saudi children with CLP and age- and gender-matched healthy children (1:1) who attended a tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Growth measurements (weight, length, and head circumference) were taken at the ages of 1 year and 2 years, and the Saudi Growth Chart was used as a reference data.

Results: The study included 86 children in each group (N = 172), with 31.4% females and 68.6% males. The mean current age was 3.2 ± 1.7 years. Most patients had a unilateral CLP (96.5%). Multivariable analysis demonstrated that at the age of 1 year, compared with controls, patients with CLP had significantly lower weight (OR: 1.7, P = 0.026), weight standard deviation score (SDS) (OR: 0.4, P = 0.001), and head circumference SDS (OR: 0.8, P <0.001); however, these did not remain significant at the age of 2 years. In the early repair (age <1 year) and late repair (age ≥1 year) groups, 76.1% and 63.2% of the patients achieved catch-up growth.

Conclusion: This study found that Saudi children with cleft lip and palate had significantly lower weight and head circumference compared with healthy children in the first year of life, but catch-up growth in the second year of life, largely following surgical repair, rendered these differences to be insignificant.