what is the treatment for cleft lip

Is there a cure for cleft lip and palate?

Children with a cleft lip or palate will need several treatments and assessments as they grow up. A cleft is usually treated with surgery. Other treatments, such as speech therapy and dental care, may also be needed. Your child will be cared for by a specialist cleft team at an NHS cleft centre.

Can cleft lip be surgically corrected?

Cleft Lip and Palate Treatment The treatment of a child born with cleft lip and/or cleft palate begins at birth and continues into young adulthood. The neonate with cleft palate will require special feeding techniques in order to ensure adequate caloric intake and weight gain.

How can a cleft lip lead to death?

early cleft lip and palate rehabilitation: A www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov › pmc › articlesEarly Treatment of Cleft-lip and Cleft-palate See Early's Public Records - We Found Early's Public Records Find Best Lip Treatment. Search for health information from across the web with discoverhealthinfo.com. juniperpublishers.com › jhnss › pdfEarly ...

What to expect after cleft lip surgery?

Traditionally, infants with cleft lip, cleft palate, or both have been fed using a NUK orthodontic nipple or a harder cross-cut nipple placed on a squeezable bottle.

At what age should cleft lip be repaired?

Cleft lip repair: A cleft lip usually is repaired between 3 and 6 months of age. Many things will determine the right time for surgery; the right time for one child may not be good for another. Cleft palate repair: A cleft palate is commonly fixed between 9 and 14 months of age.Apr 24, 2017

How do you treat a child with cleft lip?

Caring for a child with a cleft palate Bottle-feeding usually works better than breastfeeding. Some mothers pump their breast milk and give it to their babies in bottles. Watch your baby for problems with choking, gagging, or milk coming out through the nose while feeding.

How is cleft lip repaired?

The most common type of cleft lip repair is a rotation advancement repair. The plastic surgeon will make an incision on each side of the cleft from the lip to the nostril. The two sides of the lip are then sutured together, using tissue from the area to rearrange and close the lip as needed.

What causes cleft lip in pregnancy?

Cleft lip and cleft palate occur when tissues in the baby's face and mouth don't fuse properly. Normally, the tissues that make up the lip and palate fuse together in the second and third months of pregnancy.

What foods cause cleft lip?

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Pregnant women who eat a meat-rich, fruit-poor diet may be doubling their baby's likelihood of being born with a cleft lip or cleft palate, Dutch researchers report.Aug 10, 2007

Can cleft lip scar be removed?

Cleft Lip Scar Revision surgery involves surgical excision of the existing scar in an effort to improve its appearance. Technical areas of the Cleft Lip Revision include adjusting the rotation advancement, enhancing the Upper lip line (“M” design/or called Cupid's bow), and addressing any imbalances in size and shape.

Does a cleft lip go away?

The majority of children treated for cleft lip or palate grow up to have completely normal lives. Most affected children will not have any other serious medical problems and treatment can usually improve the appearance of the face and problems with feeding and speech.

Can cleft lip heal?

A cleft is usually treated with surgery. Other treatments, such as speech therapy and dental care, may also be needed. Your child will be cared for by a specialist cleft team at an NHS cleft centre.

Can a cleft lip develop after 20 weeks?

The face and upper lip develop during the 5th to 9th weeks of pregnancy. Most cleft problems can either be picked up at the routine 20-week scan or soon after birth. However, a submucous cleft, where the cleft is hidden in the lining of the roof of the mouth, may not be detected for months or even years.

How do you feed a baby with a cleft lip?

Though babies with a cleft palate can't breastfeed, moms can feed them breast milk in the bottle. They also can do non-nutritive sucking to further bond with their babies. This is when a baby sucks at the breast for comfort, not for feeding. Limit your baby's non-nutritive sucking to less than 10 minutes per feed.

How to care for a cleft lip?

Children with clefts will have a care plan tailored to meet their individual needs. A typical care plan timetable for cleft lip and palate is: 1 birth to 6 weeks – feeding assistance, support for parents, hearing tests and paediatric assessment 2 3 to 6 months – surgery to repair a cleft lip 3 6 to 12 months – surgery to repair a cleft palate 4 18 months – speech assessment 5 3 years – speech assessment 6 5 years – speech assessment 7 8 to 12 years – bone graft to repair a cleft in the gum area 8 12 to 15 years – orthodontic treatment and monitoring jaw growth

How is a cleft treated?

A cleft is usually treated with surgery. Other treatments, such as speech therapy and dental care, may also be needed. Your child will be cared for by a specialist cleft team at an NHS cleft centre.

How to treat cleft palate in children?

Hearing problems may improve after cleft palate repair and, if necessary, can be treated by inserting tiny plastic tubes called grommets into the eardrums. These allow the fluid to drain from the ear. Sometimes, hearing aids may be recommended.

Why is breastfeeding difficult for babies with cleft palate?

Feeding help and advice. Many babies with a cleft palate have problems breastfeeding because of the gap in the roof of their mouth. They may struggle to form a seal with their mouth – so they may take in a lot of air and milk may come out of their nose.

How long does it take to repair a cleft lip?

The operation usually takes 1 to 2 hours. Most babies are in hospital for 1 to 2 days.

What is the best treatment for a cleft palate?

Speech and language therapy. Repairing a cleft palate will significantly reduce the chance of speech problems, but in some cases, children with a repaired cleft palate still need speech therapy . A speech and language therapist (SLT) will assess of your child's speech several times as they get older.

How long does it take to repair a baby's palate?

Palate repair surgery is usually done when your baby is 6 to 12 months old. The gap in the roof of the mouth is closed and the muscles and the lining of the palate are rearranged. The wound is closed with dissolvable stitches. The operation usually takes about 2 hours and is done using a general anaesthetic.

What is the treatment for a cleft lip?

Cleft Lip and Palate Treatment. The treatment of a child born with cleft lip and/or cleft palate begins at birth and continues into young adulthood. The neonate with cleft palate will require special feeding techniques in order to ensure adequate caloric intake and weight gain.

What is the best treatment for cleft palate?

The majority of children born with cleft palate will need speech-language therapy at some point in their life. A speech-language pathologist is the healthcare professional that provides speech-language therapy, which may be in the medical setting, school setting, private clinic, or home-based intervention program.

What is speech language therapy?

The goals of speech-language therapy are to provide the child with the knowledge and skills to achieve normal speech and communication for their age or developmental level. Read more about speech-language cleft lip and palate treatment.

When is cleft palate surgery performed?

Cleft palate repair is typically performed on infants that are between 6 and 18 months of age. Since the primary goal of repairing the palate is to avoid any abnormal speech development, the surgery is scheduled earlier before the child develops much speech. Read more about cleft palate surgery.

Does cleft lip treatment end?

Cleft lip treatment and/or cleft palate treatment does not end, however, with operative repair. Comprehensive care of the child with cleft lip and/or palate includes expert professional attention to speech and hearing, dental and orthodontic needs, and psychosocial well-being.

What is the importance of dental care for a cleft lip?

Dental care starts at a very young age for the cleft patient. Maintaining proper dental health early minimizes tooth loss and maximizes the amount of alveolar bone present at the time of bone grafting, resulting in smaller bone clefts and less bone graft needed.

How old should a baby be to have a cleft lip?

Although not absolute, a general and easy rule for timing of cleft lip repair is a rule of 10s: at least 10 pounds and at least 10 weeks of age.

What is a cleft in a feeding therapist?

The type of cleft is determined and classified as bilateral, unilateral, or horseshoe shaped and complete or incomplete. The feeding therapist then checks for the presence of all oral reflexes that should be present at birth including rooting, suck initiation, and transverse tongue reflex.

What is the severity of a cleft?

The severity of issues (e.g., weight status, severity of cleft, respiratory issues, ability to feed orally) assists with determining how quickly the infant needs to be seen by the surgeon or other specialists (e.g., gastrointestinal; ear, nose, and throat) or whether admission to the pediatric hospital is warranted.

Can infants bottle feed with a cleft?

Most infants are able to bottle feed with a specialty device regardless of the size, location, or type of cleft. In cases in which infants are unable to meet their caloric needs orally, the reason is usually separate from the cleft. These issues may be respiratory, gastrointestinal, or cardiac in etiology.

Can you tap a cleft lip before surgery?

If taping or a palatal device is employed prior to lip surgery, this intervention occurs early in the treatment plan. For lip taping, family members are given instructions and a demonstration in the clinic by the plastic surgeon and nurse practitioner on placing tape across the cleft under some tension.

What is a cleft lip?

A cleft results when the tissues do not join together properly. A cleft lip is a physical separation of the two sides of the upper lip, and appears as a narrow or wide opening or gap in all layers of the upper lip. This separation can include the gum line or the palate. A cleft palate is a split or opening in the roof of the mouth.

When is the first cleft lip surgery?

The first surgery is usually performed by the time a baby is 3 months old. Several techniques can improve the outcomes of cleft lip and palate repairs when used appropriately before surgery. They are non-invasive and dramatically change the shape of the baby’s lip, nose and mouth:

What is a cleft lip and palate team?

Because of the number of oral health and medical problems associated with a cleft lip or cleft palate, a team of doctors and other specialists usually works together to develop a plan of care for each patient. Members of a cleft lip and palate team usually include:

How many babies have cleft palate?

Cleft lip and/or cleft palate affects 1 in 1,000 babies every year, and is the fourth most common birth defect in the United States. Clefts occur more often in children of Asian descent. Twice as many boys as girls have a cleft lip, both with and without a cleft palate.

How many children with cleft palate need surgery?

About 30-40 percent of children with a cleft palate need further surgeries to help improve their speech. Speech is usually assessed between ages 4 and 5. Often a nasopharyngeal scope is performed to check the movement of the palate and throat.

What causes a cleft lip?

Other factors that can contribute to development of a cleft include: The condition may also occur as a result of exposure to viruses or chemicals while the baby is in the womb. In other situations, cleft lip and cleft palate may be part of another medical condition.

Why do babies have clefts?

Most scientists believe clefts are caused by a combination of genetic (inherited) and environmental (related to the natural world) factors. There seems to be a greater chance of newborn having a cleft if a sibling, parent or other relative has had the problem.

What is cleft lip?

Cleft lip and cleft palate are two congenital skull-facial malformations. That is, they occur inside the mother’s womb when the bones and soft parts of the baby’s nose and mouth fuse to form the palate and upper lip. If they fail to join completely, a cleft is left on the lip, palate, or both.

The treatment of cleft lip

The diagnosis of cleft lip and palate takes place at the time of the baby’s birth, through a physical examination of the mouth, nose, and palate.

The benefits will come in time

An early approach with an experienced professional team is key to providing the best health conditions for these children. Most youngsters respond successfully to treatments, although these require time, interventions, and patience.