Early and Later Phonological and Language Development of Children with Cleft Palate

Psychopathology in Infants, Toddlers, and Preschool Children with Nonsyndromic Clefts of the Lip and/or Palate: A Case-Control Study

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study is to assess psychopathology and maternal interactions in infants, toddlers, and preschool children with nonsyndromic clefts of the lip and/or palate (NSCLP) and association of psychopathology with cleft-related factors and maternal interactions.

DESIGN

Twenty-six children from 4 to 72 months of age with NSCLP, who were attending the Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery Department were included as the case group. Fifty-two healthy children who were matched on age and sex with the case group were taken as controls. Children were assessed in aspects of psychiatric diagnosis, articulation, and development.

RESULTS

Speech and language disorders (SLD) ( P <0.001), disorders of affect (DA) ( P =0.005), feeding behavior disorder ( P =0.002), sleep-behavior disorder (SBD) ( P =0.038), and disordered mother-child relationship ( P <0.001) were more prevalent in children with NSCLP. Dental alignment ( P =0.024), number of operations ( P =0.006), and type of operations ( P =0.012) were associated with DA. The children in the case group, who had disordered relationship with their mothers had significantly more SLD ( P =0.036) and SBD ( P =0.039).

CONCLUSIONS

Children with NSCLP are at risk of developing psychopathology, especially SLD and DA. Maternal interactions and the above cleft-related factors and may be the target of interventions to prevent and treat psychiatric disorders in these children.

Speech pathology telepractice intervention during the COVID-19 pandemic for Spanish-speaking children with cleft palate: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

Due to the lockdown and quarantines caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the need to study and use telepractice for providing speech pathology interventions for children with cleft palate has arisen.

OBJECTIVE

To carry out a systematic review of the use of telepractice during the COVID-19 pandemic for providing speech pathology interventions for Spanish-speaking children with cleft palate.

METHODS

In July and August 2020, the authors searched the electronic databases Medline, LILACS, SciELO, and the Cochrane Library using the following keywords in English (MeSH): Cleft palate combined with Early intervention, Speech therapy, Rehabilitation of speech and language disorders, Speech production measurement, Speech articulation tests and Telemedicine. Original articles were selected and analyzed, complemented by an analysis of flowcharts and recommendations by the GES Clinical Guide of Cleft Lip and Palate of Chile's Government and the authors' expert opinions.

RESULTS

A total of 2680 articles were retrieved, of which 23 were critically analyzed and used to adapt the early stimulation, evaluation, and treatment of children with CP to speech therapy telepractice at the Gantz Foundation, a Hospital in Santiago de Chile.

LIMITATIONS

Only three researchers carried out a quick review, which limited the depth of individual analysis of the studies included. Also, the suggestions and material presented should be evaluated in future investigations.

CONCLUSION

This systematic review provides useful guidelines for providing speech pathology interventions through telepractice for children with cleft palate. Audiovisual materials seem to be extremely useful for families receiving the interventions. The use of interactive videos for Spanish-speaking children and educational videos for parents is manifest.