title: Diagnosis and management of patients with clefts: a comprehensive and interdisciplinary approach.
abstract: This article reviews the most current practice guidelines in the diagnosis and management of patients born with cleft lip and/or palate. Such patients frequently have multiple medical and social issues that benefit greatly from a team approach. Common challenges include feeding difficulty, nutritional deficiency, speech disorders, hearing problems, ear disease, dental anomalies, and both social and developmental delays, among others. Interdisciplinary evaluation and collaboration throughout a patient's development are essential.
authors.affiliation: Arkansas Children's Hospital, Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 1 Children's Way, Slot 836, Little Rock, AR 72202, USA. Electronic address: LDHartzell@uams.edu.
authors.forename: Larry D
authors.initials: LD
authors.lastname: Hartzell
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Otolaryngology, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: Lauren A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Kilpatrick
mesh_terms: D002657:Child Development / Q000502:physiology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D002971:Cleft Lip / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D002972:Cleft Palate / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000601:surgery*; D019468:Disease Management; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D008297:Male; D010348:Patient Care Team / Q000458:organization & administration*; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D011788:Quality of Life; D012307:Risk Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods; D016896:Treatment Outcome
keywords: Cleft; Diagnosis; Follow-up; Interdisciplinary; Management; Surgery; Team