OBJECTIVES: to describe the frequency of types of lesions in patients with cleft lip and/or palate, in order to confirm the association between demographic factors and cleft lesions and to identify the factors associated with age on first receiving specialized medical attention. METHODS: a case-series study was conducted with 1,216 children aged <10 years with non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate. They were being treated at the Facial Deformity Care Center at the Professor Fernando Figueira General Medical Center from January 2002 to December 2005. Data were obtained form a secondary dataset belonging to this Center. RESULTS: the prevalence of clefts was higher among males (57.4%). Most of them came from Recife Metropolitan area. About half (48.9%) were aged >24 months when they first received a specialized medical consultation. A higher percentage of children whose first specialized medical care occurred at an age of less than one year was found for the Agreste and Sertão regions. Around 55% of children with submucosa cleft first received care at an age greater than five years. CONCLUSIONS: it was observed that the overall distribution of clefts accords with that presented in the literature. There is a need for a greater knowledge on the part of health professionals to allow them to provide adequate care and diagnose clefts.
Cleft lip; Cleft palate; Epidemiology
