Academic outcomes of children with orofacial clefts: A review of the literature and recommendations for future research

This paper summarizes the main findings of population-based studies of the academic outcomes of children with isolated orofacial clefts compared to peers, general samples, or siblings, published over the past decade. Most of the reviewed papers report that children with orofacial clefts, particularly children with cleft palate only or in some studies children with cleft lip and palate, may have on average lower achievement on certain outcomes like test scores when comparing to non-siblings. However, there are important differences across studies including designs, populations, outcome measures, and findings. The paper also offers recommendations for future research priorities including controlling for confounding, examining mechanisms and potential heterogeneity across family sociodemographic and contextual factors, and understanding outcomes in less developed settings.