WHAT ALL GOES INTO CLEFT SURGERY?
Cleft lip and cleft palate are birth deformities that affect about one in every seven hundred births. These abnormalities are common among Asians and specific groups of American Indians, they are less frequent among Caucasian and African American births.
These types of birth defects often happen during the early parts of the pregnancy period, when the fusing together of the roof of the mouth and the sides of the lips of the fetus do not happen.
A child can be born with one cleft type or both. Having the two types of cleft birth abnormalities are more common with male babies than female babies.
The only way to fix cleft palate abnormalities is through surgery, with the main objective is to close down the opening in the roof of the mouth of the baby. The surgery lasts for a few hours, and we want to give you an idea of what happens during the cleft surgery our team performs.
The Initials Steps
Of course, the initial steps include preparing your baby for surgery, putting him or her to sleep, and our anesthesiologist attaches an IV to your child with the medicine to anesthetize him or her.
Performing the Surgery
Once we have completed all the preparation, our medical team will proceed with the actual procedure. A device is placed inside the mouth of your child so it will remain open throughout the surgery. Next, incisions are done on the two sides of the palate next to the cleft.
After the incisions have been made, we will loosen the tissue layer connected to the hard palate bone so that it will stretch, then another cut on the gums are done so that we will be able to reposition the tissue in the direction of the center of the roof.
Then we will use sutures to close both the inner and outer layers of tissues. With regard to the cuts made in the gums, these will be left alone until it heals.
Feel free to come to us so you can find out more about how we can help your child to correct cleft palate abnormalities. We will be more than willing to help you.
