The Essentials - What Families Need to Know
Cleft lip and cleft palate are openings or splits in the upper lip, the roof of the mouth, or both. Cleft lip and palate result from the incomplete closure of the upper lip and roof of the mouth when an unborn baby's face and mouth are developing. While being born with a cleft is rare, cleft lip and cleft palate are among the most common birth defects. In fact, these abnormalities affect about one in every 700 births. There are many different types of cleft lip and cleft palate that a child can be born with. A major way of signifying the type of cleft lip a child has is its arrangement and formation. A cleft lip can be on just one side (unilateral), or both sides (bilateral) of the upper lip. Cleft lip may occur by itself, or can occur with a cleft palate. Likewise, a cleft palate may occur in isolation, without a corresponding deformity of the upper lip.
What parents should know:
You are not alone! Cleft lip and palate, while rare in an idnvidual community, still ranks among one of the most common congenital conditions. Moreover, specialized care is vastly available to help children thrive. In circumstances where a family may lack the neccessary resources to care for the child, their are wonderful resources such as MyFace and Smile Train; organizations dedicated to looking out for the next generation.
No treatment plan is the same. Like you, your child’s treatment will be individualized, and tailored to their needs.Like any other condition or facial deformity, their is no common treatment, or a specific routine that doctor’s generally advise. For example, a child with a bilateral cleft lip and palate typically requires a more complex treatment plan, not just in the present, but in the future, than someone with a unilateral cleft lip and palate. These scenarios are not always circumstancial, but simply child specific, oe child may have difficulty hearing, while one may have a deviated septum and hear just fine.
Finally, and most importantly: A cleft does NOT define your child!! With the appropriate care and support system, from a knowledgable surgeon to a speech tehrapist, your child can grow just the same as every other kid their age. Their may be noticable differences, red scarring from surgeries, or a nasally voice because of the cleft, but their is nothing wrong with that.