Are there characteristic features of the craniofacial skeleton in parents of children who have orofacial clefting (OFC)?The craniofacial morphology of the parents of children with orofacial clefting: a systematic review of cephalometric studies.

Kalha, Anmol S
McIntyre, GT
Mossey, PA

Department of Orthodontics, Director and Coordinator, Centre for Evidence Based Dentistry, Davangere, India

McIntyre GT, Mossey PA.The craniofacial morphology of the parents of children with orofacial clefting: a systematic review of cephalometric studies. J Orthodont 2002; 29:23-29McIntyreGTMosseyPAThe craniofacial morphology of the parents of children with orofacial clefting: a systematic review of cephalometric studies.J Orthodont20022923-29

Address for Correspondence: Grant T McIntyre, Orthodontic Department, Glasgow Dental Hospital and School, 378 Sauchiehall Street, Glasgow G2 3JZ, UK. E-mail: [email protected]

Evidence-Based Dentistry (2003) 4, 16. doi:10.1038/sj.ebd.6400167

Evidence Based Dentistry 4(1):p 16, 2003.

Data sources

Cochrane Library, Medline, HealthStar, POPLINE, SDLINE, SPACELINE, EMbase, Old Medline, CINHAL, ASKSAM, the orthodontic reference database (1950-1997), European Clearing House on Health Systems reform, UK National Research Register and hand searching of Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal and bibliographies of retrieved publications.

Study selection

The search strategy was based on the key words, "parent", "cephalometry" and "cleft". Studies written in any language were included but case-reports and case series were excluded.

Data extraction and synthesis

A range of clinical parameters were extracted from the studies with statistical analysis when available. Studies were assessed for quality but methodological variation and insufficient consistency in study design precluded synthesis of data.

Results

Parental craniofacial morphology in OFC is distinctive.

Conclusions

The parental craniofacial complex in OFC is distinctive in comparison with parents of children without cleft lip and palate but there is insufficient information to localise these differences. The quality of available data is limited.