A Review of the Bilateral Cleft Lip Repair in Two Subregional Centers

Abstract Background: Bilateral cleft lip is a congenital craniofacial anomaly that occurs due to nonfusion of the medial nasal prominences with the maxillary prominences on both sides. Bilateral cleft lip repair is technically challenging, requiring careful consideration and appropriate surgical technique for a good outcome. This study aims to review the morphology of the bilateral cleft lip and the surgical techniques employed at two subregional centers in a low-resource setting. Methods: This was a 15-year retrospective study of patients who had bilateral cleft lip repair at the study centers. Ethical approval was obtained from the ethics committee. The data were extracted from the cleft database and were analyzed using SPSS version 25. Results: A total of 101 cases were reviewed, with males accounting for 55.4% (56) of the participants. The pattern of the bilateral cleft lip was bilateral complete in 66.3% (67), bilateral incomplete in 21.8% (22), and a combination in 11.9% (12) of the participants. The Mulliken surgical technique was employed in 68.3% (69) of patients, Millard in 20.9% (21), straight-line in 7.9% (8), and others in 2.9% (3). The complication rate was 5.9% (6) of the participants, and the mean duration of admission was 1.8 days. Conclusion: Bilateral cleft lip presents with various clinical patterns. Employing the appropriate surgical techniques and expertise results in a good outcome.