The quality of life after cleft lip and palate surgery

Abstract

Background and aims. Labio-maxillo-palatal clefts represent one of the most common congenital malformations, which manifests through aesthetic, functional and psycho-social alterations. The long course of multidisciplinary treatments represent a psycho-emotional and financial burden for both the patient and his family, being an important factor in the complex management of these patients.

The study aims to assess the quality of life of parents of children with clefts and the psychosocial impact on the family and society.

Methods. The study included 40 subjects who met the inclusion criteria for this study. Following patient informed consent and the approval of the ethics committee, the data were collected by applying the quality-of-life evaluation questionnaire. The evaluation was performed using the Likert scale (1 - not at all to 5 - very satisfactory), and the data were statistically processed.

Results. Most of the questionnaires were completed by the mother, who accompanied the child to the regular check-up; 58% of parents believe that their social life is not affected by having a child with a cleft, and 83% say that interfamilial relationships have not been affected. Most parents consider that the postoperative result was very good, which led to improved psycho-social integration of the child.

Conclusions. The study confirmed an acceptable quality of life for the children’s parents, which was not influenced by the family presence of a child with a cleft. At the same time, the excessive care of the parents for the child with the cleft was confirmed. The postoperative improvement of the aesthetic aspect led to a much better psycho-emotional integration of the child in the society.