POPULATION FREQUENCY OF CONGENITAL CLEFTS OF THE UPPER LIP AND PALATE IN THE REGION OF NORTHERN TAJIKISTAN

The article is devoted to the study of the population frequency of congenital cleft lip and palate among children in the Sughd region. The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of this pathology among newborns in the region. The material for the retrospective epidemiological study included data on 346 newborns with congenital cleft lip and palate who were admitted to the departments of maxillofacial surgery of the Sughd region during 2017–2021. The study established a high frequency of this pathology, with the highest number of cases registered in 2018 and the lowest in 2020. It was found that the ratio of boys to girls was 1.8:1, and a considerable proportion of patients were admitted to dental departments at the ages of 0–3 years and 3–8 years. It was also shown that most children with this pathology live in rural areas. The article presents data on the forms of congenital clefts, gender distribution, and territorial characteristics of pathology prevalence, which emphasises the medical and social significance of the problem and the need for further study of risk factors and improvement of early diagnosis.