Cleft lip and palate

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

Throat anatomy

Infant hard and soft palates

Cleft lip repair - series

Cleft lip and palate

Definition:

Cleft lip and palate are congenital (present from before birth) abnormalities that affect the upper lip and the hard and soft palate of the mouth. Severity of the abnormalities may range from a small notch in the lip to a complete fissure (groove) extending into the roof of the mouth and nose. These features may occur separately or together.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

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Cleft lip and palate may occur in association with other syndromes or birth defects. There are numerous causes for these birth defects, including mutant genes inherited from one or both parents, and teratogens (drugs, viruses, or other toxins that can cause abnormalities in a developing fetus).

As well as being disfiguring, these abnormalities can cause feeding difficulties, problems with speech development, and ear infections.

Risk factors include a family history of cleft lip or palate and presence of another birth defect. The incidence of cleft lip and palate varies with different races. Approximately 1 out of 1,000 Caucasians are affected. The incidence of cleft palate alone is 1 out of 2,500 people.