How do you get cleft palate?

Answer 1

The condition is congenital; that is, babies who have cleft lip, cleft palate, or both are born with the condition. For more information, see: http://familydoctor.org/online/famdocen/home/children/parents/special/birth/034.html

it is a birth defect

Answer 2

The only treatment for a cleft lip or palate currently, regardless of age, is surgery. Most doctors recommend that this be taken care of early on in life, as ear disease, dental problems, and speech can be severely affected. Correcting a cleft lip/palate is highly important to take care of at a young age, especially as children begin to learn to talk. Children with a severe cleft will most likely have trouble forming their mouth/lips in the correct positions to make the correct sounds, and that can a huge problem as they learn to speak.

However, since surgery is so expensive, they are cleft palate repair charities such as Operation Smile that offer these services for free. See link below for details on cleft lips/palates or how you can help.

Answer 3

Anyone can get a cleft lip and/or palate, but it is usually genetic. Meaning it is passes down from your parents or grandparents. You are born with a cleft lip and/or palate right from birth. However cleft lips are more common in certain ethnicities than others. It seems that nobody knows why. Cleft lips are most seen in Native Americans and Asians and least in those of African descent. There are at least 400 genetic disorders where cleft lips are a feature. One of them is Waardenburg syndrome. WS is a leading cause of hearing loss, pigment differences.