1.What is cleft lip? Cleft lip and palate? Cleft palate?
In the early stage of embryonic development, the lips and palate are fused together by the tissues on both sides toward the midline of the body; if they do not fuse normally, various cracks in different parts will be produced; a simple cleft of the lips is called a cleft lip; a cleft of both the lips and the palate is called a cleft lip and palate; sometimes a cleft of the palate only in the mouth but normal outside is called a cleft palate.
2.What causes it?
Most of the causes are unknown, and experts have suggested a number of possibilities. For example, viral infection in early pregnancy, radioactive radiation, social pollution such as water and air, chemical substances, certain drugs or even stimulation, mental tension and other factors. In the past, only a very small number of patients being clinically treated could be traced to familial factors.
3, cleft lip and palate is a sequential treatment Cleft lip and palate treatment is a comprehensive series of treatment, which requires multidisciplinary experts to treat together, and surgery is only a small part of it. Due to the abnormal development of palate bone, it leads to the dysarthria of the affected children. Therefore speech training is also required after cleft palate surgery. In addition, corresponding orthodontic and prosthetic treatments are needed at different stages. Ear treatment is also required in the early stages of treatment if hearing problems occur. Cleft lip and palate have adverse effects on the patient’s appearance and oral function, thus causing different degrees of psychological problems, when a psychotherapist is also needed to provide the necessary psychological counseling throughout the treatment process.
4.Second surgery, does not mean that the surgery failed After the end of the phase I surgery, due to the limitations of the patient’s own conditions or the post-operative recovery, sometimes it is necessary to perform phase II surgery for further improvement. Those who have cleft palate left after surgery, those whose postoperative slurred pronunciation was examined by doctors as a result of incomplete palatopharyngeal closure and secondary deformity of the maxilla after surgery. After cleft lip surgery: abnormal upper lip looseness, overly wide upper lip manhood, insufficient height of the middle part of the upper lip, inconspicuous manhood, and collapsed nasal tip. When patients reach a certain age, they can undergo secondary surgery for repair.
5.It is not too late to mend the situation. A considerable number of patients in China are not newborns or even adults when they are exposed to serial treatment. For these patients, in addition to the above-mentioned programs, we can develop improved programs and staged programs according to the age of the patient, so that the patient can receive relatively systematic treatment; we can also develop selective programs according to the economic conditions of the patient, so that the patient can receive the most necessary part of treatment.
Although cleft lip and palate is the most common of the congenital defects and the most numerous of the maxillofacial developmental defects, it is one of the most curable of all congenital defects. The development of the patient’s intelligence is hardly affected, and with timely comprehensive treatment including oral and maxillofacial surgery, orthodontics, prosthodontics, otorhinolaryngology, speech therapy, psycho-spirituality, and various departments of gynecology and pediatrics, patients will recover early and become physically and mentally healthy individuals.