Publications

Abstract Aim: To assess the role of environmental factors such as smoking, alcohol, prescription of drugs or illness of mother and also socioeconomic status attribute to nonsyndromic cleft lip/palate (NSCL/P) and also to evaluate if vitamin supplements play a protective role against NSCL/P. Materials and Methods: Data were collected using self-formulated questionnaire from a total of 250 mothers of which, 125 were mothers of children with NSCL/P who were undergoing treatment in various CL/P centers in and around Mangalore constituted the study group and 125 mothers of normal healthy children who were the outpatients with trauma or inpatients with bone fractures or under some other treatment in the hospital in and around Mangalore. Results: There was a positive association between socioeconomic status and NSCL/P occurrence (odds ratio [OR]: 7.76, P = 0.000, confidence interval [CI]: 95%). Positive correlation was also seen for maternal exposure to passive smoking (OR: 1.97; CI: 95%, P = 0.008). In contrast no statistically significant results were found for history of occupational exposure (P = 0.122) maternal alcohol consumption (P = 0.498), active smoking (P = 0.498), maternal illnesses and drugs taken during pregnancy. It was also seen that vitamin supplementation played a protective role against NSCL/P (OR: 0.19, CI: 95%, P = 0.003). Conclusion: NSCL/P is of multifactorial origin with both environmental risk factors and genetic predisposition concurrently playing a key role in the causation of the same. It can be concluded from our study that absence of maternal nutritional supplementation, maternal passive smoking and mothers of lower socioeconomic strata conferred greater susceptibility to the occurrence of NSCL/P in their offsprings. 

Key words: Cleft lip/palate, Environmental factors, Nonsyndromic cleft lip/palate