Prevalence of Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate in Rural North-Central Guatemala

Abstract

Objective To estimate the number of new cases of cleft lip and cleft palate in the department (state) of Alta Verapaz, Guatemala, in 2012. Design Cross-sectional survey of midwives from communities identified through a two-stage cluster-sampling process. Midwives were asked how many babies they had delivered in the past year and how many of those newborns had various types of birth defects, as illustrated in pictures. Setting Indigenous Mayan communities in rural north-central Guatemala. Participants Midwives (n = 129) who had delivered babies in the previous year. Main Outcome Measure Reports of babies born with cleft lip and cleft palate. Results A 1-year prevalence rate of 18.9 per 10,000 for cleft lip and 4.7 per 10,000 for cleft palate was estimated for Alta Verapaz. None of the cases of cleft lip also had cleft palate. Conclusion The indigenous communities in north-central Guatemala might have a relatively high cleft lip prevalence rate compared with the global average.