The prevalence of otological manifestations in children with cleft palate

i) To determine the prevalence of the various otological manifestations that occured in children aged between 1 to 5 years, presenting to the Departments of ENT and Plastic Surgery with overt cleft palate. ii) To evaluate the possibility of the association of the different otological manifestations in relation to the various types of cleft. A cross sectional study was performed on children with cleft palate presenting to the Otorhinolaryngology and Plastic Surgery OPDs of KLE Society's Dr. Prabhakar Kore Hospital and MRC (KLESPKH & MRC) (a tertiary referral centre), Belgaum between February 1, 2007 and January 31, 2008. Data was collected by clinical ear examination and evaluation of tympanometry reports. Prevalence of external ear abnormalities in the studied population was 13%. More than 55% of the participants' ears were diagnosed clinically with OME. There was no statistically significant association between type and side of cleft with the presence of OME. External ear deformities are more prevalent in the cleft palate population than the general population. There was a high prevalence of OME in concordance with previous studies. The prevalence of other otopathology was rare. There was no association of the type or side of palate cleft with OME.