Cleft Palate
A separation in the body’s natural structure is known as a cleft. Surgery can be performed soon after birth to treat cleft palate with very successful results. This genetic problem generally occurs between one in 600 or 800 births. Cleft palate usually requires surgical intervention. However, a microform cleft is only a minor disfiguration where no surgery is required. It manifests itself as a small dent, or it can look like a scar.
Cleft Palate – What Is It?
Cleft palate is a condition in which the two plates of the skull that form the hard palate (roof of the mouth) are not completely joined.
The soft palate is in these cases cleft as well. In most cases, cleft lip is also present.
When the skull’s two plates that form the hard palate, which is the roof of the mouth, are not joined completely, the
condition is known as cleft palate. The soft tissues of the palate and the lip are also affected.
Causes of Cleft Palate
Cleft palate is usually genetic in nature. A specific gene was identified in 2004, which increases the occurrence of these deformities three-fold. However, cleft palate may also occur due to environmental causes, or may interact with genetics. In the absence of other obvious factors, when a person with a cleft palate gives birth, the chances of the child having the condition can rise from 1 in 700 to nearly 1 in 14.
Treatment of Cleft Palate
Cleft palate can be treated by surgery between 9 and 18 months. Usually 20-25% of children afflicted with this condition require only a single surgery for correction of the deformity. Cleft palate can also be treated through a new innovation known as the
Latham appliance, which helps bring the cleft together and makes surgical repair easier.
A craniofacial team usually treats children who suffer from cleft palate. Procedures vary between teams. Some medical teams wait for the child to grow to 10 or 12
years to carry out treatment on the jaw, as permanent teeth replace milk teeth. Other teams perform medical procedures earlier, as speech therapy becomes harder
at later stages. Experts that play a vital role in cleft palate treatment include cleft palate surgeons, orthodontists and speech-language pathologists.
Cleft Palate Complications
Children afflicted with cleft palate have problems with feeding, ear infections, and have abnormal speech. A few of the permanent and primary teeth may also not exist. Children with this condition usually feel insecure because of their appearance, and may display negative emotions like anger, fear, depression, sadness, and estrangement from other children. Therefore, it is very important for parents to educate their children to deal with the negative situations that may arise due to their condition. They should take care to prepare the child psychologically and make them more confident in society.