Cleft Lip & Palate
Cleft lip/cleft palate is one of the more common congenital defects, with an incidence of about 1:750 live births. Cleft lip may occur alone or in conjunction with cleft palate. Its forms range from mildly disfiguring to bilateral complete cleft with nasal deformity and involvement of the hard palate and teeth.
Treatment begins soon after birth with paediatric evaluation of the patient for any coexistent anomalies. Lip repair can be performed any time after birth. In general, most repairs are timed according to the "Rule of 10s"--10 weeks old, weight of 10 pounds and 10 grams of haemoglobin.
Feeding is the major concern and problem when child has cleft palate because child cannot suck due to the cleft. Child can be feed by spoon or Paladai. Palate is repaired around 9-12 months of age. After palate repair, about 80-90% will speak normally or may need minimal guidance from speech therapist. 10-20% of children operated for cleft palate are likely to need some help from speech therapist or second surgery around age of five years.
