Introduction/aims : Our aim is to demonstrate how the width of a cleft of the palate can be used to predict speech outcomes in children with cleft lip and palate.

Materials/methods : We measured the width of the cleft palate on all babies born with unilateral/bilateral cleft lip and palate in treated in two units in the UK. All of the children had their speech assessed with the cleft audit-protocol for speech – augmented (CAPS – A) protocol at the age of five. We compared the dimension of the width of the cleft palate with the speech outcome for all cases.

Results/statistics : There was a statistically significant relationship ( P < 0.01) between a greater the width of the cleft palate and a poorer speech outcome.

Conclusions/clinical relevance : The dimension of the cleft palate can be used to predict the severity of speech impairment in children born with cleft lip and palate.

Key words : cleft palate dimension; predictive factor; speech outcome