ABSTRACT
Objective To analyze the voice quality of children post operation for complete cleft palate through subjective and objective evaluation and explore the correlation between them. Methods Electroglottography analysis was used in the natural sound/a/of 30 postoper-ative children with complete cleft palate and 34 normal children, and the difference was compared. The natural prolonged sound/a/was as-sessed with GRBAS (grade, roughness, breathiness, asthenia, strain) in the children with complete cleft palate, and the correlation between the subjective and objective results was analyzed. Results F0, harmonic to noise ratio (HNR) were less, and the shimmer, jitter, normalized noise energy (NNE) and nasalance was greater in postoperative children with complete cleft palate than in normal children. For the children with complete cleft palate, G and R mainly rated as levels 1 and 2, B also rated as levels 1 and 2 in less than half of the children. There were low or very low correlation between all subjective and objective results, excepted G, R, B and F0, which showed moderate correlation. Con-clusion The vocal cords vibrate slowly and irregularly in postoperative children with complete cleft palate, suggesting mild and moderate voice disorder, and they sound hoarsely with roughness and breathiness. There are poor correlations between the subjective and objective as-sessment, and need to be used in combination for the children with complete cleft palate.
ABSTRACT
Objective: Complete cleft palate is still considered a complex problem. The proposed plan of management attempts to resolve the problem by adjusting the timing and steps of surgery. Methods: Forty-eight cases of unilateral and bilateral varieties were included in this study. Cases were operated by the author in King Khalid Civilian Hospital in Tabuk.Saudi Arabia and in University Malaya Medical Center, Malaysia, in the period from 1992 up to 2003. The study proposed to close the lip in the first week of life and palate by 7th to 10th month of age. Results: The results were satisfactory regarding closure, aesthetic appearance and speech improvement. Problems in the modified scheme are minor when compared with the classic scheme. Conclusion: Modifying the timing for treatment of complete cleft palate and lip allows early restoration of the normal anatomy of the mouth and face. This promotes normal growth of the facial skeleton and dentition, resulting in normal shape and good speech quality.