'First-of-its-kind' clinic to provide comprehensive treatment to cleft patients opened at AIIMS

A "first-of-its-kind" clinic to provide comprehensive treatment to people with facial deformities like cleft lip was thrown open for public at the AIIMS on Thursday.

Cleft lip or cleft palate is a condition when the two sides of the lip, developing in an unborn baby, do not completely fuse, thereby adversely affecting feeding, speech, facial aesthetics and leading to chest infections and ear problems.

The 'Interdisciplinary Cleft Lip and Palate Clinic' equipped with the latest state-of-the-art equipment and facilities has been set up at the Centre for Dental Education and Research (CDER) of AIIMS.

Children born with clefts require interdisciplinary management owing to compromised feeding, speaking, facial aesthetics and psychosocial components, Dr O P Kharbanda, chief of CDER, said.

"However, timely management is a critical factor in providing high quality care to cleft patients. Approximately 35,000 new cleft patients are born every year in India. Children with clefts require a multidisciplinary care from birth through adulthood at various times depending on the complexity of the condition.

"The idea behind setting up a dedicated clinic is to provide a comprehensive treatment and multi-disciplinary care to such patients. Expertise from specialities such as Genetics, Psychology, Nursing, Plastic Surgery, Paediatrics, Orthodontics and Speech and Language Pathology need to cater to each child with a cleft and their families," Kharbanda said.

The clinic boasts of a reception, clinical areas, patient records entry area, a patient-counselling and research work room, a play area, a digital information zone and a well-equipped sound-proof room for speech and audiology, he said, adding this is a first-of-its-kind initiative.

Cleft lip and palate anomaly constitute nearly one-third of all congenital malformations of the craniofacial region with an average worldwide incidence of 1 in 700, he explained.

Over 35,000 cleft children are born every year in the country adding to already existing patients with similar anomalies, he said, adding many of them do not get the required comprehensive treatment.

"Only a fortunate few have the opportunity to get comprehensive cleft care. Although most patients nowadays get cleft surgery treatment, the outcomes are not necessarily reflective of quality care. They remain deprived of the two major aspects -- correction of disfigurement of the face due to poor dental alignment and poor speech," Kharbanda explained.

A multi-centric hospital-based study from different cities conducted by the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) as part of an Indian Council of Medical Research's task force India-Cleft project revealed that around 35 per cent of patients show poor outcomes like a hole remaining in palate and complex dental disfigurement after cleft surgery. Also, about 70 per cent of patients presented with difficulties in speech.

Besides, country's first retail facility to sell "oral health care products" for dental patients at highly discounted prices was also inaugurated at the Centre.

The affordability and availability of dental products have always been a hindrance for the general population to utilise these products efficiently.

In order to minimise the sufferings of public and provide them with affordable dental products, the AMRIT pharmacy has been opened, Kharbanda added.