Speech after repair of isolated cleft palate and cleft lip and palate.

The speech of children with isolated cleft palate (CP) repaired by one surgeon has been compared with the speech of children with some form of unilateral cleft lip and palate (CLP) repaired by the same surgeon. All palate repairs included an intravelar veloplasty. We identified 57 children (5--12 years old) with cleft palates repaired in infancy, of which three patients with other medical problems were excluded. Of the 54 patients, 44 (81%) attended for review (27 CP, 17 CLP). Video recordings were analysed by two speech and language therapists, using the Cleft Audit Protocol for Speech. The CP patients had no evidence of permanent fistulas. Final speech outcomes were similar for CP and CLP patients. Intelligibility was normal in 10 (37%) CP and nine (53%) CLP patients. Mild consistent hypernasality was present in five (18.5%) CP and four (23.5%) CLP patients. No patients had moderate or severe hypernasality or nasal emission. Mild consistent hyponasality was present in five (18.5%) CP and five (29%) CLP patients. Moderate consistent hyponasality was present in one (4%) CP patient. Dysphonia was present in eight (30%) CP and seven (41%) CLP patients. Cleft-type characteristics were noted in 11 (41%) CP and nine (53%) CLP patients. No CLP patients but 10 (37%) CP patients had required a pharyngoplasty (P=0.004, Fisher's exact test). Possible reasons for this (age, cleft type, surgeon and surgery) are discussed.

The evaluation of velopharyngeal function using flexible nasendoscopy.

Nasendoscopy is an essential tool in assessing the dynamic function and structure of the velopharyngeal sphincter during speech and swallowing. Flexible fibre-optic nasendoscopy has been used by the cleft palate team at Withington Hospital, Manchester since 1989. Seventy-six patients were referred between 1989 and 1994 for evaluation of velopharyngeal function during speech. Flexible nasendoscopic evaluation was attempted in 50 patients, and successfully carried out in 43 patients. The age range was four years to 77 years (mean 21 years). The patients were divided into two groups: Group 1 consisting of patients with cleft palate and Group 2 comprised of patients with non-overt cleft palate-related velopharyngeal dysfunction of various aetiologies; such as, submucous cleft, post-tonsillectomy, post-adenoidectomy, neurological and post-traumatic. Based on the findings on nasendoscopy, videofluoroscopy and clinical speech/voice analysis the following treatment options were recommended: 17 (40 per cent) for pharyngoplasty, five (11 per cent) for revision pharyngoplasty, 15 (35 per cent) for speech therapy, four for an obturator and one for tonsillectomy. Two previously undetected submucous clefts were diagnosed.

Comparison of patients' compliance with prescribed oral and inhaled asthma medications.

BACKGROUND: Noncompliance with medications is one of the most serious problems facing health care today. However, methods to measure compliance have many limitations. METHODS: To measure specific drug compliance and dosing frequency of two asthma medications, we used medical records data and pharmacy claims data from 276 patients who had concurrent prescriptions for inhaled anti-inflammatory agents and oral theophylline. Patients were randomly selected from the pharmacy claims data files of a health maintenance organization. The patients' medical records were reviewed, and records that did not contain clear documentation of the medication, dose, and dosing frequency were excluded. Data from the remaining 119 medical records were compared with data from pharmacy claims to calculate compliance rates for each medication. RESULTS: Our calculations showed that patients were significantly more compliant with prescribed theophylline medication than with two inhaled anti-inflammatory medications (P = .0001). No significant differences in compliance were found relative to prescribed dosing frequency (twice daily or less compared with three times daily or more) for either medication (P = .6517). CONCLUSIONS: Comparison of medical record data with pharmacy claims data is an effective indirect measure of patients' compliance with prescribed oral theophylline and inhaled anti-inflammatory agents. Additional interventions must be pursued for patients with asthma regarding adherence to regimens for their prescribed inhaled anti-inflammatory agents.

Apparent inconsistent theophylline absorption from sustained release capsules.

Sustained release theophylline products can improve compliance and symptom control in children with asthma. This study examines theophylline serum concentration monitoring in pediatric patients. Fifteen children with documented asthma were randomized to receive either Slo-bid Gyrocaps or Theo-dur Sprinkle for 1 month, and then crossed over to the other product. On the last day of each study period, theophylline serum concentrations were obtained prior to the morning dose and 4 hours later. In two patients receiving Theo-dur Sprinkle and six with Slo-bid Gyrocaps, the 4-hour serum concentration was lower than the pre-dose concentration. The change between the pre-dose and post-dose serum concentrations for Theo-dur Sprinkle ranged from a decrease of 2.8 mg/L to an increase of 4.9 mg/L, and, for Slo-bid Gyrocaps, from a decrease of 4.6 mg/L to an increase of 10.5 mg/L. The inconsistent theophylline absorption with each product makes dosage adjustment difficult.

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Theophylline therapy. Titrating dosage requirements.

Theophylline has long been a cornerstone of bronchodilator therapy for asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease, but until recently its use carried the risk of serious, even fatal, toxicity. With recent advances in understanding of this drug's pharmacologic properties and pharmacokinetic characteristics, serious toxicity now can usually be avoided. The dosage requirements for theophylline demonstrate wide interpatient and intrapatient variation. Several factors responsible for this variation, most notably age, have been identified and used in definition of dosage guidelines for different patient groups. However, substantial variation still exists within these groups, necessitating measurement of serum concentration in selected patients. The measurements obtained are used to titrate the patient's dosage requirement in such a way as to maximize therapeutic response while minimizing risk of toxicity.