Cognitive and Language Issues Associated with Cleft Lip and Palate

Language and cognitive performance of children with cleft palate with/without cleft lip (CP ± L) have received relatively little attention in the literature to date. The lack of attention directed toward these areas is probably attributed to two factors. First, the speech characteristics associated with velopharyngeal inadequacy are undoubtedly the most salient problems encountered by clinicians treating these children and thus have taken priority in research for many years. Second, early findings suggesting little difference between these children and their typically developing peers in language and cognition simply discouraged additional study. More recent investigations, however, have expanded the scope of study to include toddlers and adults and utilized alternative methodologies to study this population. In this article, we will summarize the literature and explore recent findings associated with language and cognition in children with CP ± L. In addition, we will also examine performance of children with velocardiofacial syndrome-a common syndrome associated with CP ± L.