If you are interested in what is a cleft palate you should know that this is a birth defect that babies develop while they are still in the womb. The defect appears during the 6th-10th week of pregnancy when the nose, upper jaw and mouth normally fuse together creating the upper lip and the mouth’s roof.
Information about cleft palate
In case this fusion doesn’t take place, the baby will be born with such a defect. The palate refers to the mouth’s roof that consists of two distinct parts. There is the front part located behind the teeth (this is hard) and there is the other part close to the throat (which is soft).
In case of the cleft palate problem the babies have a kind of opening between the nose and the mouth. This opening could be on only one section of the palate or the whole palate. It is possible for these babies to also have a cleft lip.
Causes
When asking what is a cleft palate you should know that sadly the doctors don’t really know why some of the babies are affected by the problem while others aren’t. However it looks like the cause is a combination of environmental and genetic factors. Both fathers and mothers could pass on the genes that contain this modification.
It is important to know about the problem of cleft palate that if the mothers are taking given kinds of medications, such as the ones that control seizures, the babies have higher chances of being affected. It is also possible for a mother to have a baby with this problem if she is exposed to certain chemicals.
If you are thinking about what is a cleft palate you should know that if the mother lacks some nutrients during her pregnancy, such as folic acid, the chances for the baby to get affected increase. Smoking, drinking and drug use also make it more likely for the baby to be affected.
According to the latest studies regarding the cleft palate issue the mothers who have more than five drinks at once have higher chances of delivering babies with facial deformities. These deformities also include cleft palate and cleft lip that could appear simultaneously.
What about the people with this problem?
What are their chances in life for the people affected with these problems? One of the most important problems that these babies encounter is a problem with eating. These babies find it difficult to be breastfed because they can’t suck normally.
The problem in case of the issue of cleft palate is that the opening between the mouth and the nose make it possible for the food to get into the little one’s nose. In this case the parents should be looking for bottles that come with a specific nipple.
Now you know a lot more about what is a cleft palate and the ways you can handle it.
