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Cleft lip or cleft palate are congenital defects where the upper lip may be spilt in two and not joined together. Or there is a gap between the two upper lip pieces or the palate may not be formed properly. This condition affects about one in every eight hundred child born. Its cause is not known but some doctors feel that infection or some drugs taken in the first trimester of pregnancy may be the cause of cleft lips or palates. It is also called the harelip. Cleft lips cause problems in eating and drinking, teething, speaking and many may get constant ear infections. Besides, a child with a cleft lip does not present a pretty picture and may be stared at.
Cleft lip and palate problems can be solved by reconstructive surgery which can resurrect the lip and make it as normal as possible. This surgery has to be done when the child is a few weeks old and consists of joining the lips by stretching them, performing microsurgery for the blood vessels and the nerves. The child can become a normal person though a few may need another surgery after a few years. This operation is highly successful and does not even leave a scar sometimes.
After the surgery great care has to be taken so that the child does not tamper with the stitches or scratch them. Elbow plates are used (where the child cannot fold his hands) to prevent him from reaching the site of the surgery. Feeding him is difficult and it can be done through a syringe and rubber tube, which injects the milk and food directly into the food pipe without coming in contact with the operated lip. After a week or two the child’s wound heals and he can be treated normally and fed n the normal way.
The cost of the cleft lip surgery is approximately $5000 in the United States. However there are charitable institutions which cover the price of cleft lip surgery or subsidize it to a great extent. There are also donors who help in financing this operation. A Smile Train exists in many countries which goes from place to place to reach the maximum number of patients and operates the cleft lip disfigurement and improves it. This gives the patient a bright smile all his life. Many doctors also may reduce their fees to deserving candidates. |
