Presentation Category
Other
Introduction/Context/Diagnosis
OBJECTIVE: Cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL±P) is one of the most common and most serious congenital anomalies. The birth prevalence of CL±P (non-syndromic and syndromic) varies from 1 in 500 to 1 in 1000 births. Breastfeeding is recognized as the gold standard of infant nutrition that benefits both mother and infant. Cleft, however, presents a serious obstacle to it. In cleft lip, orbicularis oris muscle prevents a seal of the baby’s mouth to breast and cleft palate does not allow negative pressure needed for sucking. We explored obstacles of breastfeeding in infants with CL±P and recommendations of methods used to overcome them. METHODS: We used search engines PubMed, Cochrane, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Research Gate, and Scopus and keywords cleft lip, cleft palate, breastfeeding, alternative feeding, feeding interventions, exclusive breastfeeding, post-surgical breastfeeding. The search was limited to articles in English. RESULTS: The search produced 118 articles. After removing duplicities and applying exclusion criteria, 49 articles were selected. These articles dealt with inadequate oral seal, difficulty generating and maintaining negative pressure, and suboptimal weight gain due to feeding inefficiencies. To improve feeding for infants with CL±/P, interventions such as modified feeding positions, supplemental feeds, and specialized bottles were proposed. CONCLUSION: Breastfeeding problems of infants with CL±P are still inadequately treated. This review underscores the significance of early diagnosis, parental prenatal/antenatal education, and multidisciplinary care. It is essential to build personalized approaches, including collaborations between International Board-Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) and cleft care teams in addressing breastfeeding challenges for infants with CL±P. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Our heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Marie Tolarova and Dr. Mirek Tolar for their guidance and to the University of the Pacific for faculty support and a platform for presenting our study.
Location
Arthur A Dugoni School of Dentistry, 155 5th St, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA
Format
Presentation
Breastfeeding of Infants with Cleft Lip and Palate
Arthur A Dugoni School of Dentistry, 155 5th St, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA
OBJECTIVE: Cleft lip with or without cleft palate (CL±P) is one of the most common and most serious congenital anomalies. The birth prevalence of CL±P (non-syndromic and syndromic) varies from 1 in 500 to 1 in 1000 births. Breastfeeding is recognized as the gold standard of infant nutrition that benefits both mother and infant. Cleft, however, presents a serious obstacle to it. In cleft lip, orbicularis oris muscle prevents a seal of the baby’s mouth to breast and cleft palate does not allow negative pressure needed for sucking. We explored obstacles of breastfeeding in infants with CL±P and recommendations of methods used to overcome them. METHODS: We used search engines PubMed, Cochrane, Google Scholar, Science Direct, Research Gate, and Scopus and keywords cleft lip, cleft palate, breastfeeding, alternative feeding, feeding interventions, exclusive breastfeeding, post-surgical breastfeeding. The search was limited to articles in English. RESULTS: The search produced 118 articles. After removing duplicities and applying exclusion criteria, 49 articles were selected. These articles dealt with inadequate oral seal, difficulty generating and maintaining negative pressure, and suboptimal weight gain due to feeding inefficiencies. To improve feeding for infants with CL±/P, interventions such as modified feeding positions, supplemental feeds, and specialized bottles were proposed. CONCLUSION: Breastfeeding problems of infants with CL±P are still inadequately treated. This review underscores the significance of early diagnosis, parental prenatal/antenatal education, and multidisciplinary care. It is essential to build personalized approaches, including collaborations between International Board-Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) and cleft care teams in addressing breastfeeding challenges for infants with CL±P. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Our heartfelt gratitude to Dr. Marie Tolarova and Dr. Mirek Tolar for their guidance and to the University of the Pacific for faculty support and a platform for presenting our study.
Comments/Acknowledgements
Presentation Category: PIP: Bench or Clinical Research