Pure tone hearing threshold of patients with cleft palate anomaly in Kaduna, Nigeria

Background: Hearing loss is common in people with isolated cleft palate (ICP) or cleft lip and palate (CLP). There is renewed hope for surgical repair for people with cleft deformity in Nigeria today due to serious commitment in offering them free surgeries by Smile Train and other non-governmental organizations. While effort at corrective surgery is very commendable, the need for proper diagnosis and management of hearing loss among the cleft population cannot be overemphasized. The aim of this study was to assess the pure tone hearing threshold of patients with cleft palate anomaly at Smile Train Centre Kaduna, Nigeria. Methods: This was a prospective cross-sectional case controlled study to assess the pure tone hearing threshold of consecutive adults and children not less than 5 years of age with repaired or unrepaired cleft lip and cleft palate attending Etomie Smile Train Centre in Kaduna, Nigeria compared with a control group of non-cleft volunteers matched for age and sex. Ethical clearance and informed consent were obtained. History, ear examination and pure tone audiometry were performed. Data collected were analyzed using SPSS version 16. Simple statistical parameters, Chi - Square and paired-samples T-test were used as appropriate. The level of statistical significance was set at p<­­0.05. Results: The prevalence of hearing loss was 59.4% in patients with CLP and ICP and 12% among the control group. Conclusions: There is high prevalence of conductive hearing loss among patients with cleft palate anomaly at Etomie Smile Train Centre Kaduna.