Cleft Palate

A cleft palate is a congenital deformity that may occur in combination with a cleft lip. It is an inborn separation of the roof of the mouth, which acts as a barrier between the mouth and the nasal cavity. The palate, or the roof of the mouth, has a hard and soft part. When you roll your tongue upwards, you can feel the hard palate. The soft palate is way at the back, and it is integral for speech. Affected children have hypernasal speech, feeding difficulty, and frequent ear infection. Palate surgery restores the anatomy of the soft and hard palate to as normal as possible. Studies show that patients who had undergone palatal surgery also had improved hearing and a drop in ear infection rate. The procedure is done under general anesthesia and with hospital admission for a few days. Medical clearance for patients in the pediatric age group is usually required.