Patient: Description of condition (onset time, main symptoms, hospital visited, etc.): Cleft lip and palate, Hello Dr. Cui! I want to know when is the right time for cleft lip and palate surgery, I have also consulted several local hospitals, the answers are different, and I heard that Guangzhou Children’s Hospital can do cleft lip and palate at once, will this have an impact on the child’s facial development? Other hospitals usually say to do the cleft lip and palate separately, but I don’t know anything about medicine, so I hope you can tell me what is the difference between doing it separately and doing it together? I would like to have my child’s cleft lip and palate done at once, but I am afraid that it will affect his facial development!
Cui Yingqiu, Department of Stomatology, Guangzhou Children’s Hospital: The advantage of doing it separately is that the surgery is relatively easy and less risky. It is less demanding on the child’s physique. Disadvantages: large cost, need for general anesthesia 2 times, difficult surgery at the junction of upper lip and alveolar. The advantages of doing it together: the surgery can be completed in one time, and the surgery is convenient for the upper lip and alveolar junction. The cost is low. Disadvantages: The surgery is difficult and relatively risky, requiring the child to weigh at least 7 kg, after 5 months of age. High requirements for the overall level of the hospital. The surgery has a certain impact on the child’s jaw when developing. However, this effect can be corrected by later orthodontic treatment. Orthognathic surgery can also be corrected if necessary. In addition, children with cleft lip and palate, whose facial development is inherently impaired, can obtain better articulation and restore normal anatomy as early as possible by having surgery before the age of 9 months, which is beneficial to the physical and mental development of the child. This is the principle of congenital malformation treatment. Bilateral cleft lip and palate can be operated after one month. Preoperative orthodontic treatment is best done after the child is 20 days old.