Scandcleft randomised trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and palate: 3. Descriptive study of postoperative nursing care following first stage cleft closure.

Background: Cleft lip and palate is one of the most common congenital anomalies requiring surgical treatment in children, normally commenced in the first year of life. Following the initiation of a group of multicentre surgical trials of primary surgery, variations in postoperative recovery and management became apparent. An agreement was made for a nurse-led survey in eight surgical centres to document postoperative care and recovery.

A Scandcleft randomised trials of primary surgery for unilateral cleft lip and palate: 1. Planning and management.

Background And Aims: Longstanding uncertainty surrounds the selection of surgical protocols for the closure of unilateral cleft lip and palate, and randomised trials have only rarely been performed. This paper is an introduction to three randomised trials of primary surgery for children born with complete unilateral cleft lip and palate (UCLP). It presents the protocol developed for the trials in CONSORT format, and describes the management structure that was developed to achieve the long-term engagement and commitment required to complete the project.

[Treatment of cleft lip and palate in Finland].

In Finland about 120 babies are born with cleft lip and palate per year. The largest group is those with isolated cleft palate (60%) and only one fourth have complete cleft lip and palate. The clefts are closed under one year of age.