ArticleThe Laryngoscope2026
Quality of Life Impact of Velopharyngeal Insufficiency: The Role of Social Determinants of Health.
Article in The Laryngoscope, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Quality of Life Impact of Velopharyngeal Insufficiency: The Role of Social Determinants of Health.The Laryngoscope · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesThe impact of velopharyngeal insufficiency (VPI) on patient and caregiver quality of life (QOL) is well documented. The social determinants of health (SDOH) that affect this relationship remain unclear. This study aimed to evaluate these associations to better understand how social context impacts patients and caregivers at risk of VPI due to congenital cleft and craniofacial deformities.
methodsRetrospective review of caregiver-reported Velopharyngeal Insufficiency Effects on Life Outcome (VELO) questionnaire responses was conducted for patients seen in a multidisciplinary cleft and craniofacial clinic from 2020 to 2023. Scores were matched to census data regarding educational opportunities, health/environmental factors, and socioeconomic factors using the Childhood Opportunity Index (COI). Associations between QOL and SDOH were evaluated via linear regression, with higher scores representing better values.
resultsAmong the cohort (N = 161), multiple SDOH categories significantly predicted the QOL impacts of VPI (p < 0.05). Socioeconomic factors were positively correlated with speech limitations, situational difficulty, emotional impact, and caregiver impact (β = 0.23-0.36, p < 0.05). Contrary to our hypothesis, health/environmental factors exhibited a significant negative correlation across the same VELO domains in addition to swallowing problems (β = -0.29 to -0.12, p < 0.05). Educational opportunities showed no significant association with any VELO subcategory (β = -0.11 to -0.03, p > 0.1).
conclusionHigher socioeconomic status was associated with better VELO scores, underscoring the protective role of resources in health outcomes and caregiver perceptions. In contrast, caregivers with better health/environmental conditions reported worse outcomes, suggesting that higher health standards may influence perceptions of VPI severity. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: 3:
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.