Genetic DisordersKATELYNN & KAETHE

PERIOD 5

MRS.BOCK

Cleft Palate and Cleft Lip

Cleft Palate is a facial and oral malformation that occurs in the beginning stages of pregnancy.

Cleft lip and palate is when there is not enough tissues in the mouth or lip area and the tissues that are available did not join together correctly.

A cleft lip is a physical split or opening in the roof of the mouth or on the lip.

A cleft palate can turn into a cleft lip depending on how far the cleft palate goes up.

Hudson’s Story

The mother of baby Hudson was anxiously waiting for information on her first born child at her ultrasound appointment. The family at the time was living with their grandparents looking for a house due to money shortage. At the appointment the mother decided to pay an extra $150 for a 3D ultrasound that could see almost any defect in Hudson. Later, the tech at the ultrasound thought she saw something wrong and went to find the doctor. The doctor walked in looking for Hudson’s face only to tell his mother the disappointing news. Baby Hudson was diagnosed with cleft lip and palate.

Holding back her tears, the mother was very upset going home to tell her family and friends the unfortunate news. Hudson’s dad was unable to make it to the appointment because he was trying to earn money from his job. When his dad found out about his genetic disorder he said to his wife, “that’s it?” The father didn’t care that his son was going to be special, all he cared about was that he was going to have a child. On January 16th 2012 baby Hudson was born. In that moment the parents could only describe Hudson in one word, perfect.

Hudson was born with a unilateral cleft lip and palate. They struggled with Hudson’s feedings, weight gain, appointments, costs and fees, as well as Nasoalveolar Molding (NAM) which is a device that is placed in the mouth to help shape and improve the position of the nose. His first surgery to repair his lip and nose was when he was only 4 ½ months old. Even with Hudson’s disorder he always had a smile on his face. He still has a long road ahead of him to fix his cleft lip and palate, but nothing has stopped him from being happy.

Physical Characteristics

The physical characteristic of a cleft palate is a hole in the roof of the mouth.

The physical characteristic of a cleft lip is a hole in the lip generally from the lip to the nose.

A unilateral cleft lip and palate is when there is a hole that connects from the roof of your mouth coming up to your lip and nose.

A bilateral cleft lip is when there is two holes on both sides of your lips.

A bilateral lip with full palate is when there is the palate split into two ways going up to your lip and nose on both sides.

If cleft palate and lip is not fixed it may cause speech problems, possible hearing loss from fluid build up, as well as dental problems.

Internal Characteristics

There are normally no internal effects but some children born with this disorder could possibly have birth defects, like heart disease, and some muscle weaknesses.

Mental Effects

A baby born with cleft lip or palate can potentially not live as long as the average healthy person because when a person has cleft lip or palate it is hard to gain weight because the palate and lip makes it complicated to eat, therefore causing them to lose weight and possibly make them sick.

Cleft Lip Not Fixed Cleft Lip Fixed

Causes of cleft lip and palate

Scientists still are not completely sure what causes cleft lip and cleft palate, but they do have some theories that chromosome 9 does play a role in causing cleft lip and palate.

Scientists recently found a gene on that chromosome that could be the root cause of cleft lip and palate.

Cleft lip is also caused from environmental factors. For example, lack of folic acid, alcohol consumption, and Pierre Robin syndrome which is when a baby is born with a small lower jaw, and their tongue is positioned farther back in their mouth often resulting in cleft palate.

Cleft lip and cleft palate is also caused when the structures and tissues that form the mouth and upper lip don’t fuse correctly.

Inheritance

The genes the baby inherits from their parents occasionally is what causes cleft lip and palate. If there is a history of cleft lips and palates the baby is more vulnerable to getting the disorder due to genes that have been passed on through generations.

Who gets cleft lip and palate

In the United States every year more than 2,650 babies are born with cleft palate and more than 4,440 babies are born with cleft lip with or without a palate.

Cleft lip is mainly associated with babies that are still developing in the womb. When you are anywhere from the years of 1 to the day you die you can’t develop a cleft lip or palate.

There is no particular gender that cleft lip and palate apply to.

Sometimes Native Americans, Latinos, and Asians have a bigger chance of getting cleft lip.

The Diagnoses

Doctors diagnose this disease by looking at pregnant mothers ultrasounds. Doctors can see it around when the pregnant mother is 13 weeks.

There are not many signs of cleft lip but doctors can just see the cleft lip or palate forming.

The Treatments

To repair a cleft lip the baby may need at least one or two surgeries beginning at the age of 3 months.

To repair a cleft palate the person will need multiple surgeries for up to 18 years if not more.

The surgeries start when the baby is 6 and 12 months old.

Oral surgeons and plastic surgeons mainly treat cleft lip and palate.

People with cleft palate may have to go to speech therapy to improve their talking skills.

Conclusion

Overall, cleft lip and cleft palate is a common disorder in America that affects many new born babies. It is not scientifically proven what the cause is for cleft lip and palate but there are theories. Cleft lip and palate are when there are not enough tissues or if you have all the tissues and they just don’t join together correctly. As you can see Hudson was a survivor and is still alive today. He is a dream that came true to his lovely parents. An interesting fact is Native Americans, Latinos, and Asians are more common in getting cleft lip. Not all the time because other races can get this disorder too.

Citation

Nemours. “Cleft Lip and Palate.” http://kidshealth.org/teen/diseases_conditions/sight/cleft.html#.10/22/2015

CDC. “Facts About Cleft Lip and Palate.” http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/birthdefects/cleftlip.html.10/27/15

WebMD. “Cleft Lip and Cleft Palate.” http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/guide/cleft-lip-cleft-palate?page=3#2. 10/27/2015

Mayo Clinic. Cleft lip and palate. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cleft-palate/basics/tests-diagnosis/CON-20024619. 10/27/15