An orofacial cleft is the fourth common congenital malformations in humans. It is caused by the inadequate closure of maxillary processes during 4th week to 12th week of intrauterine life. Dental caries, being a chronic disease, affects both the children and adults. Hence a study was conducted to assess the dental caries status in children with cleft lip and also compare with children without cleft lip. Retrospective data collected from 89,000 case records from June 2019 to March 2020 were taken for the study. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the present study consisted of 6 children divided into two groups: children with cleft lip and children without cleft lip. In both groups, parameters such as Decayed- Missing - Filled Teeth index score were recorded and tabulated. The data was subjected to Mann-Whitney test using SPSS software. Higher DMFT score was seen in patients without anterior crossbite. Mean DMFT Index for case group (children with cleft lip) was 4, and the mean DMFT Index for control group (children without cleft lip) was 8. Higher caries prevalence was noticed in children without cleft lip when compared to children with cleft lip. The difference was not statistically significant (P value - 0.20). Within the limitations of the study, dental caries status in children with cleft lip is good compared with children without cleft lip.
Key words: Clefts, Dental caries, Oral hygiene measures.
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