Cleft Palate If you have any photos or case history of cleft palate that you would like to share, please email it to me at hayajiolh@yahoo.com . Cleft palate is a birth defect in which the two halves of the mouth do not fuse together properly. When the face and skull of a foetus form, the upper lip and palate develop from tissues that lie on either side of the tongue. In normal development, these tissues grow towards each other to meet in the middle and so form a complete palate and upper lip. In cleft lip, it seems that the tissues that form the upper lip grow normally but simply fail to join up in the middle of the face. In cleft palate it appears that some obstruction may prevent the tissues that form the palate from joining. Newborn Persian kitten with complete hard and soft palate cleft. This cleft does not extend to the lip or nose.   Cleft palates can occur with or without cleft lip, also known as 'hare lip'. Cleft lip occurs when the tissues that form the upper lip do not join in the middle. Instead, a gap occurs in the lip, usually below one or other nostril. This is called 'unilateral cleft lip'. Sometimes two gaps occur in the upper lip, each below a nostril, which is referred to as 'bilateral cleft lip'. The mildest presentation of cleft palate is sometimes found in older animals as oronasal fistula, or an opening between the mouth and nasal passages. Symptoms would be frequent sneezing fits and mucous discharge from the mouth and nose.   Newborn kitten with bilateral cleft lip     The causes of cleft lip and palate remain unclear. Studies in humans show that although there is a genetic factor, it appears to be very slight. (see Human Clefts below). Clefts are most often teratogenic in cause, meaning toxins or poisons the fetus is exposed to during development. It can also be a result of very poor nutrition during pregnancy.   Reference Material Definitions http://www.fabcats.org/is49.html Harelip is a congenital anatomical defect. It will be apparent when the affected kitten is born, and may occur with a cleft palate. The degree of hare lip varies and a mild deficit may not interfere with normal life too much or may be repairable. However, for a severe deficit, especially if there is also a cleft palate, surgery is impractical and euthanasia is the only humane course since sucking is interfered with. Cleft palate occurs in kittens as a developmental abnormality; some, but not all cases are of genetic origin. It may occur alone, or with hare lip. The condition becomes apparent soon after birth when there is difficulty in suckling and regurgitation of milk down the nose, accompanied by sneezing, noisy breathing and distress. The kittens do not thrive and can develop pneumonia due to inhalation of milk. Sometimes a kitten may die suddenly without warning signs. Treatment is not practical and euthanasia is the most appropriate course. Cleft palate also occurs in cats of all ages as a result of trauma, most commonly in road traffic accidents. The practicality of repair will depend on the severity of any other injuries sustained in the accident. Soft palate: Congenital shortening of the soft palate occurs in kittens and is very similar in its effects to cleft palate. Treatment is not practicable. Human clefts http://www.parentsplace.com/babies/bfeed/qas/0,,166600_107070,00.html Generally, facial clefting results when medial, lateral, and maxillary nasal processes on either left, right or both sides of the forming craniofacial complex do not fuse completely. Early embryonic changes (during the fourth and tenth weeks of gestation) may result in clefting. Suspected causes include: 1) environmental insults (i.e. maternal diseases, chemotherapy, radiation, alcohol, excess retinoic acid and anticonvulsant medications); or 2) genetic factors. About 22 percent of facial clefting has a genetic origin. Again, most cleft lips with or without cleft palate are produced by environmental insults (teratogens such as alcohol, retinoic acid, maternal illness, protein/calorie malnutrition during pregnancy) interacting with one or more genes. There is increased risk for congenital malformations because of maternal age at the time of pregnancy. If parents without a cleft have a child with a cleft, the chance that a subsequent baby will have a cleft is only two to four percent. If either parent has a cleft, the relative risks become about four to five percent for having a baby with a cleft. If both parents have clefts, the risks are much greater (Slavkin 1992).   A cat who has survived with cleft palate: http://orgs.unt.edu/feralcat/adoption/cleftkitty.htm How to raise a puppy with a cleft: http://members.tripod.com/hennwood/id88.htm Cleft information on dogs: http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dpalate.html CFA article on deformities: http://www.cfainc.org/articles/structure.html   Copyright Show Presence Design 2003 All rights reserved