There are basically two different types of cleft lip. Unilateral, and Bilateral. Unilateral means there is a break in the lip on one side of the nose. Bilateral means the break appears on both sides of the nose. Midline means that your baby's cleft is closer to the center of the face. The treatment is similar regardless of what kind your baby has. There is an initial lip surgery. Most surgeons do this repair when your baby is either 3 months, or 10 pounds. They also want to make sure your baby is eating well. With a unilateral cleft the lip repair is most generally done with one surgery. Depending on how wide the cleft is, sometimes they have to do an orodontic proceedure to attempt to bring the sides closer together. Rather than looking for surgeons on the internet, it is usually more helpful to ask your local pediatricians, NICU staff and early intervention team where most children in the area go. Cleft palate is usually treated by a pediatric craniofacial treatment team that includes a Plastic Surgeon, Pediatric Orthodontist, and Ear Nose and Throat Specialist. Depending on your income level and where you live, there are financial resources and programs that may be of assistance to you.

There is nothing in the world that can prepare you completely for the miracle of motherhood. All the love and concern you are feeling now, mean it will all be okay. I wish you the best!!!

both of my sons were born with cleft lip and pallett.one bi and the other uni.yeah the docs can give you alot of stuff to absorbe.they are 16 and 18 now and need a little more work.i have posted pics of the on my profile young and older.you can't really tell a whole lot.they look pretty normal. dont get to bummed,it takes alotta love and patience and the rewards are 10 fold.i have such a strong bond with them and they have become very compassionate young men.blessings they are. and you will be blessed also.feel free to ask anything or if you want to see more pics.can probably help ya out on how our feedings were and little things we learned to do especially after surgery. lots of luck to you and your baby.:)

My husband and I were told last week that our little boy has a cleft lip and palate. We had another scan today and were told that his is midline and they are also treating it as an isolated case - I was not aware of the term "midline" until today. By the sounds of it, its just to do with the placing along the lip/palate. It was very daunting at first to hear that our little man had developed this, but I found the more I searched and read up about it, the more at ease I am feeling about it. If you haven't already, have a look at the website widesmiles. It has pictures of babys at birth with cleft lips/palates, some have photos after the operations as the child grows. As you said, some pictures are disturbing, however just remember that it's only for a short time. We are so fortunate to live in the world we live in today and that medicine has progressed so much. I found this site invaluable and reassuring that everything is going to be ok.

You may also be able to find cleft support groups in your local area who you could contact and ask questions. I haven't contacted anyone as yet (but have every intention of doing so). Doctors can give you lots and lots of information, but I think it's beneficial to speak to someone who has experienced this process first hand - someone you can express your emotion to, and they to you.

Something I have noticed on the cleft support websites I have come across is how amazingly positive these people are, I find it inspirational and makes me determined to stay positive.

All the very best!

i believe that your husband will come around it's just a hard thing to deal with sometimes. Sometimes people dont know what to expect, i had my son 18 months ago and we found out when i was 7 months pregnant that our son was going to have a cleft lip, and he was born with cleft lip and palate. When the doctors told us it was so hard to accept the fact that something was wrong, My husband was more scared then i was he acted distant and honestly it was him trying to deal with it.. but the second our son was born, all those feeling of wondering what things would be like with a cleft lip baby went away. Honestly me and my husband both looked at our son and it's like we didn't even notice the cleft, he was perfect and being parents you take on what ever you have to for your kids.. so i know that he will come around. Now our son is 18 months old and has had one surgery on his lip and he is so full of life. I have never met anyone with his strength.