Motor masticatory function in children with cleft lip and palate

Background and objectives. Motor activity in the oromaxillofacial region involves close integration, bringing together all of motor acts performed in the sucking, chewing and swallowing reflex in synergy with numerous neurological components related to the organization of perception, language direction, and intelligence. The aim of our manuscript is to determine the role of motor masticatory function in 48 children with unilateral cleft lip and palate, including 30 boys and 18 girls, hospitalized at the Republican Clinical Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatric Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, between 2020 and 2023. Materials and methods. Clinically, 35 children presented with right-sided cleft lip and palate and 12 children with left-sided cleft lip and palate, the average age was 3.1 ± 1.3 months. From the perspective of increasing psychomotor activity, the children were examined polysystemically and neurophysiologically (EMG), as well as trough imaging (cerebral CT), preoperatively and postoperatively at the age of 6 months, 9 years and 12 years in order to regulate the structural and functional status of the affected region. Results. We found the absence of rhythmicity and symmetry in muscle contractions of the anatomical structures involved in the pathological process. As a result, functional disorders appear in the form of paresis (paralysis) and asymmetries of muscle activity, with significantly decreased MVC in children with unilateral cleft lip and palate at 7–12 years compared to 3–5 years (p < 0.05), which negatively influence the specific skills and motor quality of the face, being directly and proportionally pronounced clinically on the affected side depending on the age of the child. Conclusions. The aforementioned increases the risk of compressions, specific habits, muscle hypoplasia, and bone deformities, reducing the optimization of psychomotor performance and sensorimotor intelligence in facial symmetrical recovery. Postoperative EMG analysis revealed persistent asymmetry of muscle activity in children with UCLP, indicating incomplete neuromotor recovery despite surgical correction.