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. 2023 Jun 1;34(4):1252-1255.
doi: 10.1097/SCS.0000000000009320. Epub 2023 Apr 21.

Global Smile Foundation's Cleft Surgical Outreach Program: Clinical and Economic Impact During the Past 14 Years

Robert A Younan  1 , Antonio M Melhem  1 , Mario Haddad  1 , Beyhan Annan  1 , Wassim Najjar  1 , Rami S Kantar  1   2   3 , Usama S Hamdan  1
Affiliations

Global Smile Foundation's Cleft Surgical Outreach Program: Clinical and Economic Impact During the Past 14 Years

Robert A Younan et al. J Craniofac Surg. .

Abstract

Clefts of the lip and/or palate can result in significant morbidity as well as economic and psychosocial distress for patients and families. Global Smile Foundation is a non-profit organization committed to providing comprehensive cleft care to patients with cleft of the lip/palate around the world. Primary cleft lip and primary cleft palate repairs performed by the Global Smile Foundation in the last decade were reviewed. Averted disability-adjusted life years were estimated and assessed for their economic value. A total of 15,310 disability-adjusted life years were averted. The financial gain was estimated between $78,323,624 and $152,906,604, with an average financial benefit of $48,021 to $93,750 per patient.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

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