A cleft, or separation of the upper lip and/or the roof of the mouth, occurs very early in the development of your unborn child. During fetal development, certain components of the upper lip and roof of the mouth fail to grow together normally. In some cases, a syndrome may be responsible for the occurrence of the cleft. For most affected children, however, the cause will no be known. In these cases, the cleft is thought to result from a complex interaction of genetic and environmental factors.
Cleft lip repair and cleft palate repair are types of surgery used to correct this abnormal development and are meant to restore function to the lips and mouth along with producing a more normal appearance. Repaired clefts will help to improve your child’s ability to eat, speak, hear and breathe.