Aim: To determine the incidence of orofacial cleft at birth in New Zealand over 10 years from January 2000.
Methods: Comparison of data collected from cleft units and data held on the national minimum dataset.
Results: The overall incidence of OFC in New Zealand over a 10 year period was found to be 1.79 per 1,000 live births, higher than the norm for Western society. The major reason for this increased rate was an increased rate for the Māori 2.37 per 1,000 live births, specifically related to a Cleft Palate alone rate over twice that of the European (1.54 vs 0.73 per 1,000 live births). The rate for Pacific was half way between (1.04 per 1,000 live births). The rate of Cleft Lip alone was significantly lower in both Māori and Pacific populations. Different sex ratios were also seen in relation to Cleft Lip and Cleft Lip and Palate for Māori and Pacific compared to those normally reported.
Conclusions: Māori have an increased incidence of Orofacial Cleft due to one of the highest rates of Cleft Palate alone in the world. Further aetiological studies involving genetic and environmental factors are required to elicit the reasons for this increased incidence.