Cleft lip is a longitudinal split in the upper lip of a child who is not born with an intact upper lip like a normal person, commonly known as a “harelip” or “gaping mouth”. Cleft palate is a cleft at the bottom of the nasal cavity, i.e. the top of the mouth, commonly known as “lupus”. Cleft lip and palate is a congenital developmental malformation caused by the failure of the facial protrusions to fuse properly due to the disturbance of teratogenic factors during early embryonic development.
During early embryonic development, the lips and palate are gradually joined by tissue from both sides growing toward the midline of the body. If there is an error in this joining process and the connection does not occur as intended, various degrees of clefting may occur. If the cleft is only in the upper lip, it is called cleft lip (cleft lip); if the cleft extends to the hard palate or the soft palate inside the mouth, it is called cleft lip and palate (cleft lip and palate); cleft lip and cleft palate can occur at the same time or separately, sometimes only the upper palate or soft palate inside the mouth is cleft but the appearance is normal, it is called cleft palate (cleft palate only). cleft palate only).
There are two types of cleft lip and palate: non-syndromic cleft lip and palate and syndromic cleft lip and palate. Non-syndromic cleft lip and palate is a single cleft lip, cleft palate, or cleft lip combined with cleft palate, which accounts for more than 70% of all facial cleft deformities. Non-syndromic cleft lip and palate is a complex, polygenic, multifactorial genetic disorder caused by the interaction of genetic and environmental factors. Syndromic cleft lip and palate is defined as cleft lip, cleft palate, or cleft lip with cleft palate, and is associated with malformations of other tissues and organs throughout the body in the form of a syndrome. Over 300 syndromes have been identified with cleft lip and/or cleft palate, including autosomal dominant and recessive syndromes and X-chromosome linked syndromes.
Cleft lip and palate is a very old disease. It has been found in mummies preserved in the West as early as the 1st century, but it is recognized that a Chinese doctor was the first to perform cleft lip surgery. This doctor was a famous doctor under Yin Zhongkan, the governor of Jingzhou, more than 1600 years ago during the Western Jin Dynasty (316 AD).
If you pay attention, we often see cleft lip and palate patients in the streets and in public places. In fact, the incidence of cleft lip and palate is very high, according to the results obtained by China’s birth defect detection center from 1996 to 2000, among more than 22,186,160,000 perinatal babies in 31 provinces and cities, 2,265 cases of cleft lip and palate were detected, and its prevalence rate is 1.625:1,000, which means that there is 1 child with cleft lip and palate in every 600-700 newborns, and there are about Every year, about 20,000-30,000 children with cleft lip and palate are born in China.
Cleft lip and palate is a congenital malformation. Since it is a deformity, the future impact on the child is a number of problems caused by the deformity, mainly in terms of appearance and speech, which can also be extended to psychological development. However, modern medical technology can help your child get out of the situation and enjoy a healthy life.