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The cleft lip or palate is an anomaly concerning on average 1 out of 1000 children. Girls are twice as affected as boys.

-There are two forms of slots: cleft palate and cleft lip.

The cleft lip, more frequent among boys, is an interruption of the lip, that is a crack between the second incisive and the canine teeth. The nostril on the side of the cleft lip is sometimes enlarged.

The cleft palate usually affects girls. It is located on the palate, which consists of two different parts: the veil, a membrane in the back, and the bone, located in front, behind the teeth. The cleft palate concerns the veil, or the entire palate.

Another form of cleft lip and palate combines the two types of slots. It can be on one side of the mouth or both. In 30% of cases, it is associated with other malformations - heart, digestive or in the brain.

These anomalies appear during pregnancy, when the face of the fetus develops. Between the 35th and the 40th day of pregnancy, the right and left sides of the mouth should grow together with the roof of the mouth.

Unfortunately those parts sometimes don't meet causing cleft lip or palate.

-The causes and consequences

Both sides of the lips should merge to achieve a harmonious face. If this is not the case, a slot more or less important is formed. Ultrasound can see the anomaly in the sixth month.

Maternal smoking is involved in 11% of cases and 5% are related to alcohol consumption. But most of the time, there is no cause, even if the risk of cleft increases when a close relative has been suffering from an anomaly.

In addition to aesthetic disgrace, it may be difficult to speak and eat. To avoid that food passes through the nose, the newborn is fed with a particular pacifier, and an artificial palate is used to remove the communication between the mouth and nose.

-Treatments

Cleft lip surgery is required to get rid of this anomaly. The surgeon must operate quickly. If only the lip is affected, the operation takes place during the first three months of life. For more complex slots, it is possible to operate from the sixth month. One or more operations are needed to close the palate bone, the veil and the lip.

But aesthetic and eating problems are not the only consequences of cleft lip and palate. The hearing is sometimes disrupted and a review must take place quickly. The language learning process is also disrupted, which is why it is essential to be followed by a speech therapist, in addition to surgery.

The reviews take place every six months, between 1 and 3 years, because it is a key period in the development of speech. Until puberty, a consultation takes place at least once every year. Mouth exercises or re-education sessions are also necessary because some letters are difficult to pronounce.

Finally, teeth can be problematic. A slot may hinder the development of jaws because the palate is too narrow. The position of teeth may also be abnormal, when an incisive tooth is missing. Therefore orthodontists play a key role and braces are often necessary.

Those anomalies are treated effectively in America and children suffering from cleft lip or palate grow up to become normal adults. That is why our doctors now open clinics around the world to help children who need immediate care of cleft lip but cannot afford it. The clinic of Moyobamba, Peru, started in 1996 and is considered to be the best institution offering this kind of treatment.

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