Cleft palate and lip deformity is a congenital anomaly that occurs in approximately 1 in 1000 births. The defect may occur only on the lip, only on the palate, or on both the lip and palate. Its formation depends on many factors. Insufficient vitamin intake or exposure to drugs and trauma in the early stages of pregnancy may be factors. The predisposition is among the reasons. The fact that it is in one of the parents and siblings increases the probability of its occurrence.
Diagnosis can be made with detailed USG and genetic tests in prenatal pregnancy or just after birth. If a diagnosis is made during pregnancy, it is useful to talk to a Plastic Surgeon specialist for information and a treatment plan about the postpartum process. Patients are asked to apply in the first week for postnatal evaluation and treatment plan. The treatment of this deformity requires teamwork. The team includes a plastic surgeon, orthodontist, speech therapist, otolaryngologist, geneticist, pediatrician, pediatric neurologist, pediatric cardiologist, nutritionist.
In the treatment, orthodontic apparatus shaping the lip, nose, and upper jaw should be prepared and used for an average of 2-3 months. This greatly increases the success of the surgery to be performed. In addition, it is necessary to have the child’s hearing tests done in this process.
The family is informed about the nutrition and care of the child. Babies born with this deformity can also be fed by breastfeeding from the mother’s breast. This is necessary for both feeding and the establishment of emotional communication between mother and baby. Feeding with a bottle or spoon should be completed in infants who cannot breastfeed adequately. The baby should be in a nearly vertical position, fed more often, burped frequently, and laid on its side.

After the use of the shaping apparatus, cleft lip surgery is planned around the 3rd month on average. This period may extend to 5-6 months depending on the situation. During the cleft lip surgery, deformations in the nose and upper jaw are also intervened depending on the situation.
Cleft palate surgeries 9-18 before the child starts to speak. It is planned for months (average 10th month). The aim of the surgery is to provide smooth and fluent speech. For this, speech therapy is necessary for the next process. Sometimes, problems may persist in the pronunciation of some letters in speech, and surgery comes to the fore again.
Nutrition is started in the early period after the surgery. A patient with isolated cleft lip and repair can be breastfed. The patient with cleft palate is asked to be fed with clear foods and spoons for the first 24 hours.
Bone transfer surgeries are planned for the bone cavity in the upper jaw at a time that coincides with the early school period (mixed dentition period). In this period, orthodontic treatment begins for the distribution of the teeth.