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About Cleft

Overview

Cleft lip and palate (CLP) is the most common facial birth defect in the world. Approximately 1 in every 500-600 children are affected, meaning that around 3000 cleft children are born in Vietnam every year. Cleft lip and palate is present in every country and in all sections of society, the rich and the poor.

Cleft deformations can take many forms. They can occur as a cleft lip either on one side of the face (unilateral) or on both sides of the upper lip (bilateral), as a cleft palate, cleft lip and palate or cleft lip and maxilla. Other types of cranio-facial clefts such as lateral clefts or facial clefts are rarer. The combined deformation of cleft lip and palate account for seventy per cent of the cases.



Bilateral cleft lip and palate
Bilateral cleft lip and palate

Simple cleft lip

Simple cleft lip



Cleft palate

Cleft palate



Left-hand lip and maxilla cleft

Left-hand lip and maxilla cleft



Transverse cranio-facial cleft with partial loss of eye

Transverse cranio-facial cleft with partial loss of eye



Full cleft of lip and maxilla

Full cleft of lip and maxilla



Cleft lips and palates develop from the fourth week of pregnancy, when the separate parts of the face begin joining together starting from the outside and proceeding inwards. If this process is disturbed, the various types of clefts are the result.