Assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cleft lip and/or repair for infants.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, elective surgeries, including those for cleft lip and palate (CLP) repairs in infants, faced significant delays in England. This study uses administrative hospital data in England (the Hospital Episode Statistics (HES) database) to evaluate the impact of the pandemic on the timing of first primary CLP surgeries among children born with an oral cleft during and shortly before the pandemic. It also explores the relationship between the timing of surgery and both short- and longer-term educational outcomes.
The findings showed a 18% reduction in the number of CLP surgeries during the first year of the pandemic, with surgeries completely halted during the initial two months. The average delay in first primary lip repair was 1.6 months, meaning a larger proportion of children had surgery outside of the recommended time frame. Delays for primary palate repairs were smaller, though varied regionally. Delays in these types of surgeries may impact children’s development and educational outcomes. Further research is recommended to explore the potential long-term impact of the pandemic on these children’s educational outcomes.
The study is complete. It was led by Prof Ruth Gilbert and was funded by ADR UK.
Key Publication:
Etoori D, Park MH, Blackburn RM, et al. BMJ Open 2023
