After a cleft lip/cleft palate surgery, it is important to listen to your doctor’s guidelines and follow up based on the doctor’s instructions. Just like you regularly would check in with your birth defects attorneys, it is very important to check up with the medical team at the appropriate intervals. Your child is likely going to be in some pain after the surgery, and he or she needs to be given the appropriate time to heal before follow-up work is done. As always, follow your doctor’s instructions for the safest and most optimal recovery.
Follow Up Visits
Once your child is discharged, there are typically two follow up dates that are required. The first visit should be at seven to ten days after surgery. The second appointment should usually be at about three weeks after the surgery. Finally, if there happens to be a wound breakdown, it is usually advisable to wait at least six months after surgery to attempt to close it. This is because blood supply needs to be reestablished to the tissues.
Birth Defects Attorneys in New Jersey and Philadelphia
Many parents who have children born with a cleft lip or cleft palate are often overwhelmed and, in some instances, confused about their legal rights. They are especially confused about whether or not the services of birth defects attorneys would be needed. In some cases, there have been improper actions that may have led to your child’s birth defect and contacting birth defects attorneys is beneficial to your family’s physical and financial health. For example, the FDA has recently announced that Topamax (Topiramate), taken during pregnancy or during child-bearing years, has been linked to an increase in the development of cleft lips and cleft palates. We are able to assist parents dealing with these issues. Contact the Mininno Law Office for a free case evaluation or call for a free consultation at (856) 833-0600 in New Jersey, or (215) 567-2380 in Philadelphia.
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Once your child starts to grow, your doctor may want to discuss appliances that can be put in his or her mouth, to make speech easier. The speech bulb may be suggested, which is a plastic ball that fits into the velopharyngeal space, which is then attached to a plastic plate fitted to the roof of the mouth and held in place by wire clasps. The size of the bulb will vary depending on the size of the velopharyngeal space. The bulbs function is to stop air and sound from escaping the nose during speech. It is removed at night before bed.
Velopharyngeal dysfunction occurs when the open space between the back wall of the throat and the soft palate cannot be properly closed during speech. Unfortunately, this results in an unwanted escape of air or sound through the nose during speech. Essentially, this dysfunction may result in what is called hyper-nasal speech. The sounds that create speech come from both the nose and the mouth. When we speak, the majority of those sounds should come from the mouth alone. Closing the velopharyngeal space allows people to build pressure in the mouth and make the appropriate speech sounds. When a VPD is present, air comes through the nose that should not, and speech becomes too nasal.
Your child has a cleft lip and is about to start school and you are nervous that he or she may be the victim of a school bully. Our caring 
Although this may seem overwhelming, children born with a cleft lip/palate can still have healthy teeth. Proper cleaning, good nutrition, and fluoride treatment is necessary. The teeth should be cleaned with a small, soft-bristled toothbrush, as soon as the teeth are visible. Early evaluation is critical, with many dentists recommending the first visit being scheduled at one year of age, or in some cases, even sooner. What dental work your child needs will be determined by the dentist, which can be as simple as preventative care, or can be extensive including dental surgery.
