Video recording study of infants undergoing primary cheiloplasty: are arm restraints really needed?

Abstract Objective: Arm restraints are traditionally used during the perioperative period for cleft surgery to prevent the affected infant from damaging the wound, but the benefits of this standard practice have been controversial. To investigate whether the use of arm restraints provides any benefit to the patient, a video recording study of infants undergoing primary cheiloplasty was conducted. Design: Analysis of video recordings of infants undergoing cheiloplasty. Setting: Shizuoka Children's Hospital, Shizuoka, Japan. Patients and Methods: Eight patients who underwent primary cheiloplasty were recorded for 24 hours on the day before the operation, the day of the operation, and the fourth postoperative day. All recordings were examined by the first author, and the frequency and manner of lip touching were evaluated. Results: Although the frequency of touching varied considerably from 2 to 136 times per 24 hours, it was not statistically different among the 3 recording days (Friedman test, p > .05). Al...